Howard Walker, Staff Reporter
Tivoli Gardens' Waheem Walker (left) and Steve Green (right) attack Omar Daley of Portmore United during their Wray and Nephew National Premier League first leg final at the National Stadium last night. The game ended 1-1. - IAN ALLEN/STAFFPHOTOGRAPHER
DEFENDING CHAMPIONS Tivoli Gardens and Portmore United played to a tame 1-1 draw in their Wray and Nephew National Premier League first leg final at the National Stadium last night.
Tivoli got off to a dream start when, in the seventh minute, midfielder Denroy Gordon rifled home a thunderous left footer from 18 yards after collecting a back pass from Markino Gillings.
But six minutes later, national striker Kevin Deerr equalised after latching on to a left-sided cross well inside the box. Goalkeeper Edsel Scott did well to block his first attempt but not the second.
In an exciting first half, both teams created chances with Gillings coming close for Tivoli and Deerr for Portmore.
The half ended 1-1, setting the stage for a frenetic second half.
However, the expected excitement never materialised as both teams came out and played a cautious final 45 minutes and the action was nowhere near as interesting as the first half, much to the disappointment of the fair-sized crowd.
The NPL championship will now be decided next Monday at the same venue in the second leg of the final at 5:00 p.m.
