Schoolboy turns free-kick hero for Harbour View
Ximines keeps youth movement moving with 2-1 win over Tivoli
Published:Wednesday | February 2, 2022 | 12:09 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
AS HARBOUR View said goodbye to young striker Oquassa Chong, another member of their youth ranks, Tarick Ximines, stepped up to the plate to finally get them their first win of the 2022 Jamaica Premier League season.
The Jamaica College schoolboy was the hero for the ‘Stars of the East’ as they defeated Tivoli Gardens 2-1 at the UWI-JFF Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence yesterday.
Oshane Staple, another free-kick specialist, gave Harbour View the lead with his deflected effort in the 32nd minute before Tivoli’s Nakeel Wright restored parity in the 47th minute with a brilliant effort.
But Ximines, who came on as a second-half substitute, drilled his free-kick attempt into the corner past Tivoli Gardens goalkeeper Nicholas Clarke to earn the team’s first win of the season in three tries.
It was a win that came in the wake of Chong’s transfer to Danish Club Esbjerg Bf until 2025, which was announced yesterday.
According to Ximines, seeing his Jamaica College alum secure a transfer provides more fuel for him and other young players to take the reins so they can realise similar ambitions.
“It is very important because Harbour View is a club that builds youngsters so that they can get contracts overseas,” Ximines said.
CONFIDENT IN ABILITY
Ximines, charged with free-kick duties, felt very little pressure and was confident in his ability to get his team back in front even when it seemed the game was headed towards another draw.
“My teammates encourage me and I know within myself that I can do it. So I did it,” Ximines said
Having salvaged a point in their season opener against Molynes United and falling victim to a late winner against Mount Pleasant last week, Harbour View head coach Ludlow Bernard said he was relieved to see the luck swing to his side of the fence.
“It is a big relief. This has been a team that has been training very well but probably devoid of luck. We rode our luck today and in the absence of a couple of players, we were very resolute in how we executed,” Bernard said.
“I am really proud of the guys and how they fought for everything.”
Meanwhile, Tivoli Gardens head coach Phillip Williams said they were unlucky not to have earned a point from the contest, given the way how his young players have performed. Williams said that the departure of Trayvone Reid and Devroy Gray has forced a reshuffle of their core for the season.
“Tivoli is basically [doing] a repair job right now. We lost two of our players that we have been building our team around over the last two years [Reid and Gray],” said Williams.
“We have some youngsters who have been putting in good shifts. It is encouraging going forward but it is disappointing that we didn’t get any points from the game.”