Finishing was our problem - Hyde
published:
Friday | February 22, 2008
Ainsley Walters, Freelance Writer
HARBOUR VIEW coach Lenny Hyde on Wednesday night blamed poor finishing for their second Cash Plus Premier League (CPPL) defeat to promoted side St Georges of Portland.
"Finishing was our problem today," said Hyde after a double from Brian Wolderston (60th and 83rd minutes) handed St Georges their first away victory, a 2-0 third-round opening win at Harbour View, repeating their second-round triumph against the champions.
Harbour View have not beaten the men from Portland in three meetings, drawing their first-round match-up 0-0.
The defending champions' loss kept them fourth in the standings on 33 points, just one ahead of St Georges, who share 32 with Boys' Town, but are fifth on goal difference in the league being led by Portmore (43), Tivoli (40) and Waterhouse (36).
Harbour View got the first chance of Wednesday's match in the seventh minute when Lovel Palmer closed in on a goalmouth rebound off Jermaine Hue's shot, which was spilled inside the six-yard box by goalie Anthoneil Williams.
However, the St Georges keeper gathered himself to challenge Palmer at his near post, blocking the midfielder's shot.
Already playing without injured top striker Fabian Taylor, Harbour View's game went out the window in the 17th minute after an injured Kavin Bryan was replaced by Rafeik Thomas.
Downhill trod
"From we lost Bryan, it was downhill for us," Hyde lamented. "Rafeik tried, but we didn't have good attacks. After conceding the first goal, we were open in the back, hoping to get a goal by high-pressing and conceded another," Harbour View's coach explained.
Thomas laid off a great pass to Kemar Petrekin in the 38th minute, sending his strike partner clear, one-on-one with the St Georges goalkeeper. However, Petrekin unbelievably shot wide of the far post with the keeper well off his line.
"These are the players we have and we have to work with them," Hyde said, referring to his second-string strikers.
"St Georges were quicker than us tonight. They were definitely getting to the ball quicker than us," he added.
The combination of Thomas and Petrekin failed to spark while St Georges looked fluent coming forward, spreading the defending champions and firing in high crosses to the back post, eluding Harbour View's tall central defenders.
In one such play, the men from Portland won a penalty in the 34th minute after striker Denroy Dennis got around left-back Kevin Wooley and was cutting into the six-yard box where Christopher Harvey clipped him.
However, captain Danian Reid, who was afterward substituted just before the break by coach Donovan Duckie, failed to beat goalkeeper Dwayne Miller.
Reid's replacement, Barrington James, came on to play a big second half, having a hand in Wolderston's second goal.
Wolderston netted his first goal, a header, off a high ball played in from the right flank by Gairy Banton, beating goalie Miller in the air after the Harbour View 'keeper was pulled off his line to the penalty spot by the cross.
Coach Hyde used up his remaining two changes, Keith Kelly on for Kevin Wooley in the 65th and Robert Scarlett in for Donald Stewart at the 75th, but the replacements did little to help the defending champions and they were caught by a deadly ball played into space by Omar Brissett in the 83rd.
Standing with his back to goal, near the touchline, just inside Harbour View's half, Brissett's back-heel to the right flank was chased by James, whose cross was met at the back post by Wolderston, who booted past Miller to complete a famous win for the promoted side.
"It's a good feeling but as I have always said victory would come if we were patient," said Duckie, who continues to impress with his handling of the Premiership first-timers - especially their impressive home record of just two losses.
"We were playing well away but a couple of things went against us. There were times we were leading and conceded goals. We came to play for a point today but at halftime I noticed the Harbour View team seemed a bit jaded and we decided to play them on the counter," he said.
