Tivoli Gardens thump Vere 4-0 to advance to the JPL semis
Tivoli gardens Football Club thumped vere United Football Club 4-0 in their return-leg quarter-final of the Jamaica Premier League, at the UWI-JFF Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence yesterday, to advance to the semi-finals 4-0 on aggregate.
Last Saturday’s first leg ended in a 0-0 draw at the same venue.
A goal in the first half from Stephen Barnett and three in the second from Trayvone Reid, Horatio Morgan and Jermaine Johnson helped the former champions see off the firsttime quarter-finalists in the first game of a double-header at Mona.
Both teams matched each other in the opening exchanges as they went in search of the first goal of the tie.
The game was fairly evenly contested until Barnett broke the deadlock in the 18th minute when he got onto the end of a right-sided cross from Devroy Grey, who delivered the perfect cross for him to score from close range at the back post.
Barnett thought he had made it 2-0 shortly after when his shot from the edge of the area, which after taking a deflection, headed for the bottom corner, but it was brilliantly saved by Kadeem Davis, who hurt himself on the play when he dived low to his right to parry for a corner kick.
Davis, who had played every minute of the season up to that point for Vere United, had to be replaced by Shavon Wilson in the 43rd minute due to the injury to his elbow.
Two minutes later Tyrese Harrison, who was played in behind the Tivoli Gardens defence, tried to lob Kewong Watkins, but the ball went high over the crossbar.
Ricardo Messam saw his shot brilliantly saved at the near post by Watkins as Vere piled on the pressure in firsthalf stoppage time.
Vere then had a huge penalty appeal turned down by referee Damion Parchment as they went into the half-time break trailing.
Tivoli Gardens resumed the game on the front foot and Barnett flashed a shot just wide of the far post, just after the restart as they looked to widen their advantage.
Vere kept pushing for the equaliser and a right-sided cross from Trevance Salmon was headed just wide at the back post by Messam.
Trayvone Reid then caught out the Vere defence on the counter-attack. With the entire defence pushing up to support the midfield he collected the ball on the half line and kept his composure to slot past the advancing Wilson with two defenders bearing down on him, to make it 2-0 in the 62nd minute.
Horatio Morgan came off the bench to score with a sidefoot volley to make it 3-0 from a corner kick from Romaine Bowers in the 86th minute to put the result beyond doubt.
Veteran Jermaine Johnson then put the icing on the cake when he slotted home from the penalty spot in the fifth minute of added time to make it 4-0.
Tivoli Gardens will face Cavalier Football Club in one of the two semi-finals at the same venue on Saturday.