For the first time in three years, reigning Jamaica Premier League (JPL) champions Cavalier will not be in the semi-finals of the Concacaf Caribbean Cup following their group stage exit.
Facing a must-win game against Weymouth Wales of Barbados on Wednesday, Cavalier were defeated 2-1 and finished fourth in Group B, outside of the qualifying spots.
The loss confirmed a premature exit for Cavalier, who had won the competition last year, as they were eliminated with a record of one win, one draw and two defeats.
Rudolph Speid, Cavalier’s head coach, laid the blame at the feet of missed opportunities and poor defensive performances.
The club also lost a number of key players before the start of the season, which Speid said made their campaign all the more difficult.
“As I’ve said before, we lost 12 players, six of them being starters, s it was always going to be difficult but I don’t think that was the reason why we didn’t make the knockout stages,” he told The Gleaner.
“I think it was poor defensive work a lot of the times because we gave away goals, and then when we got the opportunities, we just didn’t score. I think that’s where it is and I think it came down to a lot of missed opportunities.”
Speid said this year’s focus is to rebuild their squad as the club has lost several of their key players over the past few years.
With Richard King and Jalmaro Calvin signing for Scottish outfit St Mirren FC, and Dwayne Atkinson and Kaile Auvray playing in the United States with Rhode Island FC and Columbus Crew 2 respectively, Cavalier have lost marquee talents across all areas of the field.
This has been a continuing trend, with Ronaldo Webster’s departure the year before, and the club will now look to fill the gaps left behind.
REBUILD YEAR
“We only have four players from the team that won in 2021 so you can see where we are at. At some stage, we had to start the rebuild and this was the year, come what may,” Speid explained.
“We’ll never be able to replace a talent like a King, or a ‘Busy’ or an Avery or any of the players we have to replace. It is not their time yet so we have to work towards it.”
He continued, “Even from the year before, we would have lost Webster and all those players so it has been a process for us.”
The loss of their key players would not have tempered Cavalier’s appetite for success, however, as Speid said the club is still looking to defend their JPL title once again.
With their focus now shifted to the JPL, Speid said the team will improve with each game played, starting with their next match against Tivoli Gardens on Sunday.
“Again, it is a rebuilding process so you learn more when you lose than when you actually win, so I hope the players would have learnt a lot from what happened to us,” he said.
“I don’t know when they’ll be back to those heights but they’re surely working hard at it and everyone is working hard to get them back into the playoffs,” Speid continued.
“One thing I can tell you, we will be improving every match, every month so you should see the best of us and what we can produce this year. It will be on show before the playoffs start.”
