Tivoli coach Waite rues missed chances

After coming from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Dunbeholden in their Jamaica Premier League (JPL) game at Stadium East yesterday Tivoli coach Jerome Waite believes it was two points lost after a flurry of misses at the end.

Dunbeholden jumped into an early 2-0 advantage thanks to Nicholas Nelson’s double.

However, Justin Dunn, the league’s leading scorer, pulled one back from the penalty before securing the point for Tivoli with another goal three minutes into the second half.

Waite thought his team should have won the game based on the chances they created but also believes other players need to step up in support of Dunn.

“This is a game we should have won easily. We had the wind against us in the first half and Dunbeholden scored their opportunities. We, however, still ended up getting a goal in the first half.

“In the second half we had the wind in our favour and at this level when you create so many chances and don’t execute, it is really bad. We should have won this game,” he insisted.

“This is two points lost because those chances were not difficult. The team is playing well, no doubt about that, but we need players who are going to make it easier for Dunn,” Waite added.

The game was only nine minutes old when Nelson fired Dunbeholden into the lead after crashing a freekick off the post and into the net.

He then made it 2-0 two minutes later when he capped off an excellent build-up with a well-taken finish on 12 minutes.

Tivoli, however, kept themselves in the game by pulling a goal back three minutes later. A Tivoli player was fouled in the Dundeholden penalty area and Dunn converted for his eighth goal of the season.

Zackiya Wilks then had a good chance to restore Dunbeholden’s two-lead, but goalkeeper Nicholas Clarke was quick off the line to avert the danger.

Three minutes after the break, Dunn found space in the box and fired under Damion Hyatt for the equaliser. Tivoli then had a number of close misses in the closing stages with Horatio Morgan, especially, missing a host of chances along with Nickalia Fuller and Dunn.

“It was a bright start. It’s a good thing we won the toss and went with the wind, and that helped us in the second half when it was against us. We didn’t handle it well,” said Dunbeholden coach Lenworth Hyde.

“We are definitely lucky, and our goalkeeper stepped up for us and saved the day. We need to be in the top four, and we would have been there if we won today.

“But the defence needs to be fixed, and we need composed players at the back that can pass out the ball and we didn’t have that today,” Hyde said.

livingston.scott@gleanerjm.com

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