By Paul A. Reid, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
TIVOLI GARDENS kept up their quest for a place in the end of second round finals after edging Reno 1-0 in their Wray and Nephew National Premier League (NPL) second round game at Frome yesterday.
Stout second half defending, led by national representative Ian 'Pepe' Goodison who had an outstanding game, allowed Roland Deans' first half goal to stand up as Tivoli moved up into fourth place in the second round standings with 12 points.
The Glendon 'Admiral' Bailey-coached team trails only Rivoli, Village United and Portmore United while staying in fifth place in the overall standings with 30 points, three less than Portmore and Village.
Reno rallied after a sluggish first half and dominated the second 45 minutes period but had nothing to show for it.
Martin Williams was a constant threat to the Tivoli defence forcing goalkeeper Philmore Crumbie to make some good saves in both halves, while substitutes Kendrie Quarrie and Pete Campbell also kept the visitors on their heels.
Despite playing what he claims was a "flat game", Bailey was happy for the win, telling reporters after the game:
"A win on the road is always a good win. I think we played flat today because of the Christmas holidays but that was expected, so I am very thankful for this win."
After dominating the first half but taking just one of their many chances, Bailey said they should have put Reno out of the game from then and added that the off target shooting is symptomatic of their season so far.
He was full of praise for Goodison, who appeared to be favouring one of his legs, but said his experience more than made up for his less than 100 percent fitness.
"Ian Goodison is always Ian Goodison. He reads the game very well and the experience and the command he brings to the field makes a big difference. He is still not 100 per cent fit but used his experience well."
Reno's Wendell Downswell was not too upset after the second loss to Tivoli this season as he said his team took too long to get into the game, giving Tivoli the early initiative.
The team "came out lackadaisical and flat and Tivoli capitalised on that and made it count. We were much more purposeful in the second half and it was just unfortunate we did not get at least an equaliser."
The youthfulness of the team he said was partly to blame but reiterated that survival was their aim for the rest of the season.
"Once we can keep our head above the waters we will be all right. It was no disgrace losing to Tivoli who are one of the top teams in the competition and there are some positives we got out of this game so we will take those and work on it and move forward."
Downs knock-out Hill Stars for Manchester crown
By Richard Bryan, Freelance Writer
MANDEVILLE:
DOWNS FC won their second straight Manchester Knock-Out title after defeating Hill Stars 3-2 at Brooks Park yesterday.
It was the second straight loss by Hill Stars to Downs in a KO final, but their latest failure had a particular sour stamp on it.
The playing of the game was actually a strong disappointment by the Hill Stars camp, who had refused to play the original final slated for last week at the same venue after Downs turned up much later than the official scheduled time of 3:00p.m.
That decision was overturned by the Manchester Football Association, which ruled that Hill Stars exhibited unsportsmanlike behaviour for not facilitating the late arrival of their opponent.
Yesterday, Hill Stars may have felt that the gods were on their side when Ryan Swaby gave them the lead in the 20th minute, but Downs equalized through Randy Bartley four minutes later.
Dane Hall restored Hill Stars' lead four minutes after the half-time break, but Hill Stars were again to taste the odds when they conceded an own goal midway the second half.
To compound their twist of fate, their new coach Dave Anderson opted for an attacker in substituting regular sweeper Gary Wint. This left a hole in their defence and in an immediate counter attack, Gregory Adams sealed the win with a strike in the 89th minute.
Downs will now collect the Brumalia Hardware Trophy, as well as take the parish's lone spot in the Jamaica National Building Society's Federation Cup national KO competition, which begins next month.
