The 2010-2011 Digicel Premier League football competition is scheduled to kick off on Sunday, August 29. As the Observer continues its daily preview of the teams, today we look at three-time title-holders Tivoli Gardens FC.

AFTER some dazzling performances and a promising start to their Digicel Premier League (DPL) campaign last season, Tivoli Gardens’ title aspirations ended in disappointment when they failed to lift their game in the final phase and surrendered the title to Harbour View.

To make matters worse, Harbour View defeated them 2-1 in the final match of the season at the Edward Seaga Complex to celebrate their title triumph on the home ground of the outgoing champions, finishing 11 points clear at the top of the standings.

So disappointed with the team’s lacklustre finish was club president Edward Seaga that coach Lenworth Hyde was given the boot even before the final whistle of the season was blown.

Hyde was replaced by a former coach and community favourite Glendon ‘Admiral’ Bailey, who like Hyde brought the national success to the West Kingston outfit during his first stint from 2003-2006.

However, apart from returning to the former coach and entertainer for guidance, the club also secured the signatures of a number of players to bolster their squad and help the team reclaim the DPL crown this season.

With established players like Navion Boyd, Keammar Daley and Roland Dean in the team, the club has added six new players to their roster, including the Arnett Gardens trio of Lennox Creary, Kwame Richardson and Leon Strickland — three highly respected players.

Shawn McKoy of Boys’ Town, Raymond Williamson of August Town and Lennon Wright of Harbour View complete the new signings.

“We didn’t do too badly last season,” club manager Brian Rose told the Observer in an interview. “We only finished a few points off the leaders, so with the depth we have this year, we believe we can go all the way.”

Rose said that under Bailey’s regime, things are done differently, compared to Hyde, but he revealed that the players were working well with the returning coach and noted that “The players have had no problems adjusting to him”.

According to Rose, Bailey’s focus is on the start of the season and although the team is not 100 per cent ready, they will wait and see how the team performs over the first few games and take it from there.

Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the recent unrest in the community, Rose said most of the players were getting along fine, although he was still a bit concerned about a few players.

Although they are not doing too badly, he knows it will take a long time for them to truly heal emotionally.

“We just have to be patient,” he said.

Meanwhile, the long-serving manager said the public can look for a rejuvenated Tivoli Gardens team this season, one trying to deal with the ordeal that affected and unsettled their community.

However, he believes football is a powerful tool and also holds the key to help them heal the wounds and revive what has become a very depressed community.

“We know that football can do wonders and we’ll try our best to use it to help us put behind us, what went on down here,” he said.

Rose said he expects to be title contenders as usual and seriously challenging for the crown again this season, “but the aim for us is to go one better and that is all we’re focussed on,” he said.

He added that although there are still unstable financially, they will make the adjustments as the season goes along.

“Funds are limited, but we will have to make it stretch and try to raise money as the season progresses,” he said.

BOYD… established player at Tivoli Gardens