‘They never made it easy for us’

Mount Pleasant Football Academy booked their place in the semifinals of the Concacaf Caribbean Shield following a 1-0 win over Weymouth Wales of Barbados in their quarterfinal game at the Larry Gomes Stadium in Trinidad yesterday.

Haitian midfielder Johnson Juedy scored the only goal of the game, slotting home a loose ball from outside the box, to give the Jamaicans a precious win.

Although not their most convincing display, Mount Pleasant assistant coach Davian Ferguson said the most important thing was to get the win, but that they expect to improve as they go further in the competition.

“Mission accomplished,” he stated. “For us, it’s all about getting to the next round, and we successfully did that.

“We haven’t played in a long while, and we played against a team that has quality and experience at this level, and they never made it easy for us.

“We also didn’t make it easy for ourselves. We got a few chances, which we should have put away, and that would have changed the complexion of the game, but the most important thing is … job done,” he said.

He added that they will review their performance from the game and try to make improvements for their semifinal on Friday.

“Whether you win 3-0 or 1-0, any how you win, it’s about reviewing what you did well and what you could have done better and getting it right for the next game. So for us, it’s about building on what we would have seen today and trying to be better for Friday.

“We are pleased with this result, and we look forward to the next one. So now it’s about recovery and getting ready for the next one,” he said

Both teams had good exchanges in the first half, with the Jamaican team having the bulk of the possession.

However, it was the Bajans creating the early openings, forcing goalkeeper Shaquan Davis into a number of saves.

From the corner, Weymouth had a good sight of goal but placed the header over the bar.

Moments later Mount Pleasant broke and forced Weymouth goalkeeper Kishmar Primus into a diving save. Daniel Green then picked up the loose ball in a very good position but could not find either of two teammates waiting in front of goal.

Mount Pleasant continued to dominate possession after the break and had their opponents on the defensive for the most part, but could not create any clear openings.

In the 62nd minute, it took an alert Davis in goal to deny a shot in the box. Then a minute later, the Jamaicans broke on a counterattack and although they missed the initial opportunity, Juedy followed up and slotted home with a precise finish from outside the area.

Green had a great chance to make it 2-0 in the 72nd minute, but his shot deflected over the bar from eight yards out.

Nickalia Fuller should have added a second with his first touch in the 66th minute, but he kicked over with Primus in no-man’s-land.

Two minutes later Fuller fed a pass to Shaquille Bradford in the box, but his heavy touch saw the chance go begging.

Despite the Bajan team’s resilience at the end, the defending Caribbean Cup champions held on to secure their place in Friday’s semifinals, where they will face Robinhood SV of Suriname.

In the other semifinal, Metropolitan of Puerto Rico will take on Delfines Del Este of the Dominican Republic. Both semis will be played at the Ato Bolton Stadium.

livingston.scott@gleanerjm.com