Cavalier SC defeated Tivoli Gardens 2-1 to capture the KSAFA Under-17 title for the sixth time on Sunday at the Constant Spring Complex.

A goal in each half by Clayton Haynes (20th) and Jamoy Topey (52nd) secured the victory for the Rudolph Speid-coached Cavalier Soccer Club.

Trevonnie Reid found the net for Tivoli Gardens late in the game, but Cavalier held on for the narrow win.

Tivoli Gardens, playing consistent football throughout the juveniles football season, failed once again at the final stage, having also lost to Arnett Gardens FC in the under-20 final.

One good lesson they should have learned from these two failures — goals win matches. In the Arnett Gardens match, they played much better than their opponents but failed to create any real goalscoring chances.

They did create several goalscoring opportunities on Sunday, however, Reid, who eventually scored, failed miserably earlier in front of goal in the first quarter-hour of play. He had two clearcut chances to put the West Kingston boys comfortably ahead 2-0 in the 10th and 15th minutes but failed at a time when Cavalier had not yet settled.

Reid ran onto a through pass and then outsped the Cavalier defence to be one-on-one with goalkeeper Jeadine White, but the attacker succeeded only in striking the ball straight at the goalkeeper. He was at it again five minutes later. In another one on one situation, he, in another disappointing finish, thumped the ball over the crossbar with a wayward shot.

These two close shaves woke the Cavalier team out of their slumber to take the lead six minutes later through Haynes, who drove a fierce right-footed shot past ‘keeper David Martin while cutting in from the right flank.

Cavalier fielded 10 national players, among them was 16-year-old Kaheen Parris, a senior national player. The Dinthill High School fifth former recently played for Jamaica against Trinidad and Tobago in an international friendly in Port of Spain, Trinidad, last Thurday..

Despite their formidable line-up, Cavalier were made to toil for their narrow win as they were held in check by Tivoli Gardens, even though they were playing much better scoring the go-ahead goal, So much so, at the interval, the score remained 1-0.

However, 12 minutes into the second half of the 80-minute game, Cavalier increased their lead. After this, the eventual winners were made to fight off Tivoli Gardens for the next 28 minutes to escape with the result, as the Christopher Burnett-coached team threatened to ruin the party with a goal 10 minutes from time. Tivoli Gardens continued to battle away for the equaliser but time intervened at the end.