5 days ago
12
DESPITE PLAYING a man down for the majority of the contest, Mount Pleasant Football Academy kickstarted their Concacaf Caribbean Cup campaign with a win, downing SV Robinhood 1-0 last night at the National Stadium.
Sue-Lae McCalla scored the all-important goal when he opened the scoring in the 35th minute.
Head coach Theodore ‘Tappa’ Whitmore praised his team after the final whistle for the opening win.
“I think we put in a good performance and a spirited performance this afternoon,” he said.
“I’ve seen something tonight that I haven’t seen from this Mount Pleasant team, and that is the fight, so congrats to the team.”
Mount Pleasant started the contest like a team possessed, immediately pinning their opponents back with waves of attack in the opening exchanges.
However, their good start was derailed in the 10th minute as new marquee signing Warner Brown was shown a straight red card by referee Shavin Greene.
Brown attempted an acrobatic bicycle kick in the penalty box but inadvertently struck defender Furgel Sedoc in the face and was given his marching orders.
The St Ann-based team did not allow their numerical disadvantage to disrupt their dominance, however, continuing to boss the proceedings.
Mount Pleasant Head Coach Theodore Whitmore praised his team for how quickly they reacted to their situation.
“We saw what the Robinhood team had to offer so there wasn’t a lot of changes,” the Mount Pleasant boss explained.
“Going one player down, we had to change our focus, and we bore fruit from that.”
They were rewarded for their pressure in the 35th minute. McCalla opened the scoring with a header off a corner delivery.
Robinhood began to grow into the game, but several misplaced passes halted their momentum.
The away team had a speculative effort from distance in the 40th minute, which went just wide of Mount Pleasant’s goal off a deflection.
In time added at the end of the first half, Ranaldo Biggs had his first pop at goal when he was let loose on a counter attack but eventually dragged his effort far wide of the mark.
Half-time substitute came close to doubling his team’s lead just before the hour mark as he picked up on a loose ball in the box but saw his effort charged down.
Robinhood, though quiet for much of the game, had their opportunities throughout the game.
Dimitrio Andro proved a nuisance throughout the game and came close to an equaliser in the 68th minute, but his shot brushed past the side netting.
Robinhood turned on the pressure in the closing minutes, but stout defending from Mount Pleasant saw them maintaining their lead until the final whistle.
In Group B action, Jamaica Premier League reigning champions Cavalier were felled 2-0 by Cibao in their opening game.
Omar de la Cruz and Carlos Ventura handed Cibao the win with goals in the 20th and 73rd minutes.
Mount Pleasant’s next game will see them travelling to the Dominican Republic to face Moca on August 27.
Cavalier, on the other hand, will be looking to recover when they welcome Juventus des Cayes at home on August 28.
English (US) ·