It was not the most electrifying contest, but Montego Bay United did just enough when it mattered to take a narrow 2-1 advantage over Tivoli Gardens in their first-leg Wray & Nephew Jamaica Premier League quarterfinal showdown.
The encounter, which resumed under clear skies at Stadium East on Friday after Thursday’s lighting malfunction at Sabina Park forced a postponement, was more about grit than glamour. When the ball was kicked off again with 35 minutes and 49 seconds on the clock, both teams had all to play for, and it was Montego Bay United who rose to the moment with clinical execution in key moments.
Veteran forward Owayne Gordon broke the deadlock in the 56th minute with a moment of class. Standing over a free kick more than 20 yards out, Gordon delivered a curling effort that left Tivoli’s goalkeeper Nicholas Clarke well beaten.
Montego Bay grew in confidence after the goal and nearly doubled their lead in the 67th minute when midfielder Demario Phillips found space at the top of the 18-yard box and unleashed a shot that was dramatically cleared off the line by Alton Lewis.
Despite being second-best for large parts of the second half, Tivoli Gardens found their moment of magic through Roshawn Oldfield. In the 73rd minute, he rifled in a superb left-footed effort from distance to pull the West Kingston side level.
The equalizer momentarily lifted Tivoli and could have turned the game on its head four minutes later, but Nickalia Fuller's free kick sailed over the crossbar.
With the match appearing destined for a draw, Montego Bay made one final push and found the go-ahead goal in the 87th minute. A failure to clear their lines proved costly for Tivoli, as Shaniel Thomas pounced on the loose ball and played it across the area for Jourdain Fletcher, who calmly tapped in the winner.
Montego Bay United's head coach, Paul 'Tegat' Davis, welcomed the win as a psychological boost.
“We are competing for the semifinals, so it was very important we got this win. We knew it would be a tough and physical game because that’s how Tivoli Gardens play, but I knew as long as we could play our game, defend and attack as a team, and score some goals, there was no doubt we would be victorious,” Davis said.
His counterpart, Jerome Waite, felt his team could have been better defensively but took heart from the fact that they have the second leg to contest on Monday.
"The second half narrows down to high-level concentration that we lacked in defence and I think the goalkeeper should have helped us some more. So we are a bit disappointed, but the good thing is that we have another 90 minutes to play on Monday, and I am hoping that we won't have any problems at that time," Waite said.