Penalty shootout success finally for Williams
PORTMORE UNITED head coach Phillip Williams has not had a great relationship with penalty shootouts recently. But thanks to his goalkeeper Benjamin Williams he was on the right side of one for a change, ensuring his side still has a chance to finish his first full season with silverware.
Portmore outlasted Harbour View 3-2 on penalties in their Lynk Cup semifinal secondleg encounter on Friday after it finished 3-3 on aggregate after regulation and extra time. Williams was the man of the moment making three saves, including the final one from Demar Rose in the fifth round, completing a remarkable turnaround at Stadium East.
Harbour View opened the scoring in the 39th minute thanks to Garth Stewart, giving them the lead on the night and a 3-2 lead on aggregate, one that would last up until second-half stoppage time when Stephen Young’s 90+4-minute header levelled the game and the series.
Williams credited the confidence that his goalkeeper exuded and was allowed to enjoy the feeling of winning a penalty shootout, after heart-crushing defeats at the schoolboy level.
“It feels good. We have been playing some good football and getting to the final of one of the senior competitions is a testament to the quality and the work that we have been putting in all season,” Williams said.
“We were confident in Benji, in his ability to come up trumps for us in a penalty shootout. You could see the confidence before they ended in terms of his attitude. It could have gone either way but we are happy that he came up trumps for us.”
The shootout hero was ready to embrace the moment, riding a wave of momentum after equalising so late.
“Once it goes into penalties that is the keeper’s moment. So I just had to provide for my team. In training, we specialised penalties. Try to get in the player’s mind. That is my thing,” Williams said.
PENALTY SHOOTOUT HEARTBREAK
Harbour View were left to feel the sting of penalty shootout heartbreak with head coach Ludlow Bernard lamenting the way they conceded the equaliser forcing them to go the distance with tomorrow’s return Jamaica Premier League quarterfinal leg with Humble Lion now their sole focus.
“I thought it was an own goal. So clearly we are to blame for what transpired. We were prepared to set up and hold out till the end,” Bernard said.
“But Pormore kept going and as the saying goes, ‘pressure bust pipe’. I thought we were in the game but when it comes to penalties, it is anybody’s game.”
What awaits Portmore now is a date with Cavalier in Friday’s final, which Williams hopes can be the launch pad for Portmore to get back into the habit of winning titles again.
“I think it will form a catalyst in terms of pulling new talent to the club and also getting back some of our supporters. It would be a plus for us,” Williams said.