Cavalier Soccer Club which boasts a number of teenagers within their ranks, continue to defy the odds and baffle the critics with their performances in the Red Stripe Premier League.

After surging into the top six in the second round they eventually finished fourth when the round ended last week. The Rudolph Speid-coached team continued their winning ways in their opening game of the third round on Sunday with a 3-0 spanking of league leaders Portmore United at the Stadium East field. That win moved them up one spot into third on 38 points as they leapfrogged Tivoli Gardens, who are on 37 points, in the process.

One of the main drivers of the success of the team on the field, is the captain Chevone Marsh, who scored the second goal of the game in the 12th minute of play. His goal came just two minutes after the opener from 17-year-old Kaheem Parris, who was scoring in his third game in a row for Cavalier.

Marsh, who was named in the Reggae Boyz squad that will depart the island today for a two-match tour in Turkey, says the balance between youth and experience is just about perfect at the club.

“First and foremost it is a great feeling to come out victorious against the league leaders because I think they are the best team in the league as a unit,” he said after his team’s win on Sunday.

“When you check the Cavalier team you have about four or five national senior team players and it has been paying dividends. As you can see it is a very young team and it’s not easy to keep the young players in check as a captain. But the coaching staff, they are pretty good and even the tactics it’s pretty good and it’s been working for us.”

Marsh says that based on his experience, he is looked upon as a role model at the club.

“As an experienced player who has just returned from Europe I am like a role model in the team so my experience speaks for itself. When I speak the younger players listen and I am always keeping them in check by letting them know that it is a great opportunity right now for us as young players going forward even into the national team. As you can see, local-based players are getting numerous chances, so I tell them that they have to wake up because it’s a chance for us to get a real chance in the national team,” said the national invitee.

Cavalier made a big move at the start of the year by bringing in former Portmore United midfielder Paul Wilson and he has become the perfect complement to the the skipper, who is affectionately called “Messi”.

“It’s really, really good and it’s a big boost for the team because the experience of Paul Wilson gives me even more time on the field to play because we have so many players they (our opponents) have to focus on, so even then it will become easy for everyone to play.”

Even after the classy win over an excellent Portmore team, the former Calabar schoolboy standout would not be drawn on his team’s chances of surprising and winning the Red Stripe Premier League.

“We have a really good team and we want to take it game by game and see what happens at the end of the season,” he reasoned.

Messi’s current form for Cavalier is mirroring that of his last stint in Europe and he is certain to overtake that performance with just over a third of the season left to play, including the play-offs.

“I last played for KPV in Finland. I finished the season with six goals and five assists after missing the first four months of the season because of an ankle injury and it was rough coming back. But I give thanks that I got to recover and finish the season and we finished third in the league. I have five goals and eight assists so far this season in the premier league.”

Marsh and his teammate Alex Marshall have both been drafted into the Reggae Boyz squad, which means that the mettle of the young Cavalier squad will be tested without two of the best players at the weekend.

— Dwayne Richards