‘We adapted as soldiers’

HAVING NARROWLY missed out on the Kingston and St Andrew Football Association (KSAFA) Championship title last year, Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) head coach Donovan Dennison said his team were determined not to have a repeat this time around.

JDF were crowned KSAFA Championship winners over the weekend when they clipped August Town in a come-from-behind 2-1 win at the Constant Spring Sports Complex.

The team, filled with members of the Jamaican military, has established themselves as one of the top clubs in KSAFA competitions.

Having won the KSAFA Major League title in 2023 with an unbeaten run, JDF were promoted to the Championship and immediately made it to the final in 2024.

They were, however, turned back by Boys’ Town in a nail-biting 5-6 penalty shoot-out loss.

Making it to the championship final in consecutive seasons, Dennison was determined his team would leave the field as champions this time around.

“To be honest, we have gone through a lot of work, and we have seen where we had faltered last season at the finals,” he said.

“We prepared ourselves by saying we’re not going to the penalties this year. The field was wet, so we just adjusted ourselves and we adapted as soldiers to our surroundings to get the job done.”

JDF’s win was a display of their well-earned robust and determined style of play, as a brace from Sheldon Ragbeer in the second half saw them recovering from a 1-0 deficit.

Dennison said he was confident they would have pulled off the comeback from what he knew of his opponents, having faced them twice in the regular season.

“I was confident of that because we would have played August Town twice. We drew 1-1, and then in the middle of season they beat us 1-0, and in those games we didn’t play our strongest team,” he explained.

“So I knew and I was so confident that we would get this victory, because my best team was out on the pitch representing JDF.”

Through their championship win, JDF have qualified to compete in the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) Tier II competition for a chance at promotion to the Jamaica Premier League (JPL).

Dennison said a spot in the JPL is the next target for the widely successful KSAFA club.

Following a short break to celebrate their title, Dennison said the foundation work in their quest for a JPL berth will begin in earnest.

“The preparations start Wednesday. That is when we start preparations for the Tier II play-offs.”

gregory.bryce@gleanerjm.com