By LeVaughn Flynn, Staff ReporterSEBA UNITED'S plight in the Wray and Nephew-sponsored National Premier League continued yesterday as they lost 3-0 to Tivoli at Railway Oval.
Seba have not won a game in the second round and have only earned two points from five games to be second from bottom in the 12-team ranking with 12 points.
Tivoli on the other hand are in fifth position with 26 points, and only five points separate them from league leaders Harbour View and Waterhouse.
Based on the first half performance from both teams, it would have been safe to assume that the game would end in a goalless result. Tivoli, however, played more purposeful in the second half.
Their persistence paid off in the 58th minute when Christopher Nicholas scored the first of his two goals. Certainly not one of the most handsome goals in the competition, Nicholas, along with his team-mates and a few Seba defenders were scrambling for the ball on the goal line, but Nicholas was able to tap it in through traffic.
The second goal, however, was a thing of beauty. Orchestrated by Fabian Davis who took the free-kick, he lobbed the ball on to the head of Marvin Morgan who found Nicholas unmarked in the area for a well executed volley in the 80th minute.
Tivoli completed the drubbing in time added (90+1) when substitute Brenton Lopez scored in a similar fashion to Nicholas' first as Seba again had problems clearing the ball off their goal line.
Winning coach Glendon 'Admiral' Bailey said that the points standings do not truly reflect his team's performance as they have been playing well but not winning.
"We've been playing well but not really getting any results," Bailey said after his team's second victory of the second round.
"One of the things I am really pleased with is we become more disciplined in terms of what we are supposed to do on the field. I think we are starting to understand our role now in terms of the format we are playing right now," he said.
Seba's interim coach, Edwin Alcock, said the inexperienced performance by his players is an obstacle in advancing in the NPL rankings.
"What is affecting the team is not that they are unable to compete but I think this nucleus of players lack experience," he said.
"It is obvious in certain times of the game. There are lapses and people are doing certain things in the wrong area of the field. So this is what's really affecting us. It is hard to compete against teams that have the complement of experienced players that have been in the League because they are a notch ahead of you," he said.
Goalless finish at Compound
Paul-Andre Walker, Staff Reporter
THE DING-DONG battle at the top of the Wray and Nephew National Premier League table continues with Harbour View joining leaders Waterhouse on 31 points, despite not being able to find a win in a 0-0 finish at home against defending champions Portmore United yesterday.
The result has seen Portmore reverting to the fourth place position they had last week, giving up their spot to Village who took three points to take them to 29 points, two ahead of the defending champions.
Portmore United had the better of the early exchanges but Harbour View, at times, showed that they were capable of hurting their opponents.
The midfield battle that was expected, however, did not occur with both Harbour View's Jermaine Hue and Portmore's Kevin Deerr having off-colour games. The players of the first half, as a matter of fact, were the young left backs from both teams, Harbour View's Akeem Priestly and Portmore's Ricardo Smith.
NUMEROUS CHANCES
The other players on the field seemed to have foreseen the 0-0 scoreline and didn't bother with the business of creating the numerous chances expected.
While not the most exciting game by the high standards these teams set it was competitive, so competitive that the hard tackling Jermaine Benjamin was shown the red card after committing a second bookable offence.
An irate Portmore coach, Lenny Hyde was also shown the red card for expressing his views on the decision in no uncertain terms.
"Our midfield didn't come to play today, we gave up possession too easily in a game that could have been easy," he said of the game.
Harbour View coach, Donovan Hayles, was also a little disappointed with the game.
"We have dropped too many points this round," he said. "Our attackers are not making runs behind the defenders, they are coming short for the ball too often and that is one of the reasons Jermaine looked off colour today."
Beech restores Rivoli success
Raymond Graham, Freelance Writer
RIVOLI BOUNCED back to winning ways at Prison Oval yesterday when they clipped Invaders 1-0 through a third minute Patrick Beech goal in their Wray and Nephew National Premier League encounter.
Following their first defeat of the second round the previous weekend against Portmore United, the Spanish Town-based team were off to a good start as Beech got a through pass from Devon Hodges and dribbled before beating the advancing 'keeper to put his team in the lead.
The home team applied continuous pressure on Invades as Hodges, along with Beech, overseas-based Shawn 'Cartoon' Simpson and Nigerian Mobi Operaku led the way. Despite dominating the half, Rivoli failed to increase the lead after getting numerous chances.
BRILLIANT SAVE
In the dying moments of the half they came under pressure from their Trelawny opponents and it took a brilliant save from goalkeeper Dennis Clayton to stop a thunderous shot from the boot of Thomas Grant, to deny Invaders from scoring as the half ended 1-0.
The second half was very competitive and both teams got their fair share of chances to score. For Invaders Grant, along with Winston Anglin and Andre Barker, played extremely well.
However, Rivoli looked more dangerous and should have increased the lead on at least two occasions, but poor finishing from Hodges denied them.
Following yesterday's victory, the Rivoli team has now picked up 12 points to be the leading team in the second round. They lie sixth in the overall standings on 25.
"We started out aggressively and we were able to get an early goal," said their coach, Bradley Stewart. "The team is playing very well now as the players are getting very competitive and hopefully we can maintain this for the remainder of the season."
Invaders' coach Paul 'Tegat' Davis was disappointed at the loss that left them at 10th on 16 points.
"We gave up an early goal and that cost us. The team still played well but the players were unable to close down Beech who was having a good game," he said.
Village score satisfying win
Paul A. Reid, Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU:
VILLAGE UNITED scored an easy 1-0 win over former champions Arnett Gardens in their second round Wray and Nephew National Premier League game at Elliston Wakeland Centre yesterday, to move into third place in the point's standings.
With defending champions Portmore United drawing against Harbour View, the three points took Village to 29 points, two behind Waterhouse and Harbour View.
Portmore have a game in hand, however, and will play Reno at Frome on Wednesday.
Warren Ukah got yesterday's lone goal in the 12th minute, slotting into an empty goal after the Arnett Gardens' defence failed to get the ball away and Fabian Dawkins was in the right place to pass to the unmarked teenager.
Village dominated the game, especially in the first half but were unlucky to make their superiority show on the scoresheet, hitting the woodwork three times.
Arnett Gardens' coach, Jerome Waite, was a subdued man after the game, admitting his team was outplayed and lucky the final margin was just one goal.
NOT GOOD ENOUGH
"Today the opponent had the better of play. They dominated the first half and even though we came to life in the second half, it was not good enough. The Village team, they created numerous chances and the margin should have been more but we see ourselves as being lucky to come away with only a 1-0 loss."
Lloyd Williams liked what he saw from the Village bench saying afterwards: "I am satisfied with three points most of all. We got a lot of chances, some were half chances, some were just unfortunate as we hit the crossbar but I think overall the team played beautiful in attack."
He admitted they did not stamp their superiority but said creating the chances was good enough as they were not doing that in previous games.
The coach, who was fined $10,000 by the Disciplinary Committee of the JFF after his outburst at FIFA referee Hughill Thompson during his team's loss on November 19, issued a public apology after the game, saying it won't happen again.
Yesterday's game threatened to get out of hand as four yellow cards were issued in the first 20 minutes and Arnett's Gerald Neil was lucky he was not sent off after five minutes. He lunged two footed at Ian McAnuff and his boot caught the Village player in his mid thigh, but Neil escaped with only a yellow card.
Maxwell oozes at victory
Daraine Luton, Freelance Writer
"WHEN RENO had beaten Constant Spring I was the coach of Reno so I guess it is just a favour in return," boasted Geoffrey Maxwell after the men currently under his instructions carved out a hard fought 2-1 win over Reno in Wray & Nephew National Premier League action at Constant Spring yesterday.
Maxwell had something to smile about from as early as the 14th minute when Reno's goalkeeper, Damion Crooks, inexplicably allowed Nicholas McMorris to climb ahead of him and head the ball into the goal. The goal did not only bring a rare smile to the face of Maxwell, but it also sent the home crowd wild.
From then Constant Spring, obviously feeling the Christmas breeze, strung some lovely passes together and rocked the visitors onto the backfoot. During this period, Markino Gillings, under pressure from Omar Dallas, skied an easy goal-mouth opportunity after Crooks had dropped a Jermaine Richards shot at his feet.
The failure of Constant Spring to convert on that occasion allowed Reno back into the game, playing the football on Constant Spring's field as if they were the owners.
The Westmoreland team's hard work paid dividends three minutes before half-time with Pattrick Graham giving Constant Spring's goalie, Leighton Murray, no chance of saving his 20-yard effort that swerved into the far corner.
He would not have the final say, however. Gillings made amends for his earlier miss by hitting into the roof of Crooks net, allowing his team to retake the lead with nine minute left in the game.
One minute from time Gillings put the ball into the net again but was adjudged to have been in an offside position after Oneal Morrison had given him a 'gift'.
Reno, realising that time was against them immediately launched a counter-attack that caught Constant Spring napping. However, striker Gregory Teape, with only Murray to beat, hit straight at the advancing goalie who denied the ninth place visitors any chance of adding to their 17 points.
After the game, Wendswell Downswell, coach of Reno said: "I am disappointed... it is a cause for concern but there is still a long way to go in the competition".
Meanwhile, Maxwell said the game "was a must win for us as a draw would not have made much sense at all". They are level with Arnett Gardens on 18 points, but have an inferior goal difference.
