FORMER Reggae Boy Onandi Lowe is relishing his new role as head coach of August Town FC — his first stint with a Premier League outfit.

The controversial former national striker has already reaped success with the St Andrew-based club when he guided them to their first major title — the KSAFA Jackie Bell Knock-out where they defeated Cavalier 2-1 at Drewsland recently.

Spurred by this achievement, Lowe’s sights are now firmly set on rescuing the club from relegation from the Digicel Premier League, which is in its final stages. But the towering Lowe knows it won’t be an easy job to prevent the drop.

The club sits at the bottom of the 12-team league with 36 points, with four games to play.

“I took a job that most coaches would not take, but this is a test for me and this is how I’m going to prove my skill and what I’ve learnt over the periods at the JFF coaching courses,” said Lowe.

“But right now, I’m happy because it’s my first time with a Premier League team (as coach) and I ended up winning a trophy,” beamed Lowe, who was freed by a jury in 2005 after he was brought before the English courts on drug-related charges.

He said his presence at August Town at this crucial time would serve as motivation for players and fans alike.

“August Town is kind of down and I’m just here to help and to motivate them,” said Lowe, who has played both as striker and defender for Jamaica. He is capped 65 times and has scored 27 goals.

Lowe, who has been in charge of August Town for only a few weeks, took over from a fellow former national player Paul Young who is credited with lifting the team from the bottom of the DPL table to seventh and into the Jackie Bell KO final.

However, since Young’s departure, the team has struggled, but his successor is confident he has the answers to rejuvenate the team.

“The style and the way we’ve trained at August Town over the last couple of weeks, is mostly about passes… we have a striker problem, but we have good personnel who can pass the ball,” he said.

“If we can pass our way into the back of the net, then it would be easy for my team,” added Lowe, who has scored some outstanding goals for the Reggae Boyz.

He pointed to the team’s first goal against Cavalier in the Bell KO final as an example of how the team has trained coming into the match.

“We passed and went to the flanks; we passed inside and then side-footed in an easy goal,” Lowe explained.

He is hoping the victory will help build the team’s confidence going into the remaining Premier League matches. Their campaign continues today when they visit Effortville for a match-up with the tough Humble Lion.

“We’re in the bottom half of the league, but I always tell my players that there are bigger clubs and better teams below us, so they must not put their heads down, because football is not played on paper, but on the field,” Lowe said.