Mount Pleasant Football Academy squandered a golden opportunity to close the gap on leaders Montego Bay United atop the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) standings after playing to a 1-1 draw with hosts Tivoli Gardens FC at the Edward Seaga Sports Complex yesterday.
Jashaun Anglin gave Mount Pleasant the perfect start when he converted from the penalty spot in the eighth minute, but Alton Lewis struck in the 73rd to earn Tivoli a share of the points.
The result moved Mount Pleasant to 46 points, five behind Montego Bay United, who sit atop the JPL standings on 51. Tivoli Gardens, who have endured a difficult campaign, remain 10th on 30 points.
Sporting Director Paul Christie admitted that his team let another opportunity slip, but noted that there is still plenty of football left to be played.
“We still have 14 games left to concentrate on, and no matter what we say, we can’t correct that result right now. Sunday, we missed an opportunity and today we missed another opportunity. But it is a 39-game season and so everything will balance itself out, so we are not overly concerned about that right now,” said Christie.
Mount Pleasant started brightly, attacking confidently through the middle and earning an early breakthrough when Anglin calmly dispatched his penalty past goalkeeper Nathaniel Francis. They continued to press and created several clear-cut chances in the first half, but poor finishing prevented them from extending their lead.
Tivoli struggled to create meaningful opportunities in the opening period as Mount Pleasant’s disciplined defensive unit kept them at bay. The visitors went into half-time with a deserved 1-0 advantage.
However, Tivoli emerged with renewed energy in the second half, launching several attacks down both flanks while tightening up defensively to frustrate their opponents. Their persistence paid off in the 73rd minute, when Lewis arrived at the near post and calmly slotted home past Mount Pleasant goalkeeper Shaquan Davis.
Christie added that his team knew a second goal was crucial for his team to kill the game off.
“We knew all along that we needed a second goal to kill the game off, but we knew that over 90 minutes that our opponents would have gotten an opportunity; and they did get that opportunity and they scored on us,” he said.
Despite the dropped points, Christie pointed out he found positives in the performance, particularly from the club’s emerging talents.
“We saw some good things from some of the newer players and the academy kids, and so it was a very good and balanced performance from the team,” he added.
Robert Bailey
