Andrew Peart could not have asked for a better start to the 2019/20 Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL) season with his fairly revamped University of the West Indies (UWI) Football Club.

Peart, who led UWI FC to the play-offs last year when finishing in sixth position, lost the majority of the players who were instrumental in that feat, but one could hardly tell the difference by the manner in which his new squad imposed themselves on Tivoli Gardens on match day one.

Their performance was as explosive as it was efficient, and Peart himself was taken aback by their 4-0 schooling of Tivoli Gardens at UWI Mona Bowl on Sunday.

The scoreline was even more rewarding based on last season’s rivalry between both teams, as UWI FC only won one of their three meetings.

“I must say I didn’t expect this because you don’t find these scores a lot in the league; the margin of victory is normally by a goal, or two the most, and especially against a team who really challenged us last year for that top six,” Peart said.

“So I must commend the players in front of goal for us, who got the opportunities and we scored them. A lot of times in games you might get the chances but you don’t score, but today (Sunday) we got them and we scored,” Peart told the Jamaica Observer in a post-game interview.

Thorn Simpson (13th), Jabari Hylton (50th), and substitutes Shuwayne Barrett (73rd) and Trivonte Stewart (84th) were the scorers who ensured the university side made light work of their west Kingston-based opponents, who fielded five players formerly of UWI.

Peart lauded his players for controlling the game and maintaining focus to remain balanced in the defensive and midfield areas which paved their way for the attacking line to apply consistent pressure, resulting in the four goals.

“What we tried to do was not to focus on the players who are formerly of UWI but now at Tivoli; they served the club well, throughout the four years they were here, and they have moved on. We just played our game; we didn’t mention anything at all about them in our pre-game talk; we just said we had Tivoli to play and we focused on that,” Peart reasoned.

He added: “So, I must commend my players; they fought hard and I told them that to survive in the league as youngsters, you will get no respect; you have to play hard.

“They have the talent and the experience will serve them well; they just have to work hard to get themselves to that level, and they showed that they have what it takes today. For one, we were clinical in front of goal and we got a clean sheet at home to start the league, so that was good and I must commend them for effort.”

Though they passed their first test of the season with flying colours, Peart is by no means grandstanding just yet, as there is still some ways to go in the nine-month campaign. And with their aim being to again make the top six and by extension the semi-finals, the tactician is aware that to achieve the goal, they have to approach each game with the same spirit.

“This victory will improve the team morale, for sure, and give them a little more belief. But next week is a different challenge and that’s what the league is about: adapting to the challenges every week. No game will be easy and so we have to bring the same level of efficiency every week,” Peart ended.

The win on Sunday pushed UWI FC atop the 12-team standing with three points ahead of promoted outfit Molynes FC, who slammed champions Portmore United 3-0 on Monday.

Cavalier FC and Humble Lion occupy third and fourth, following 3-1 score lines over Dunbeholden FC and Arnett Gardens, respectively, while Harbour View are in fifth after their 2-1 win over Mount Pleasant Football Academy.