MONTEGO BAY, St James – Falmouth United won their first title in the Jamaica Football Federation Western Confederation/Charley’s JB Rum Super League after coming from a goal down to beat FC Reno 3-1 in the end-of-round final at Jarrett Park on Sunday.

Tavar Thompson shot FC Reno into the lead after nine minutes, but Falmouth United roared back with Alex Gayle who replaced Val Armstrong in the 11th minute, equalising in the 17th minute, while Peter Campbell and Donte Green both added goals to complete the comeback.

Despite the result, neither coach — Falmouth United’s Lenworth Hyde and FC Reno’s Michael Graham — attached much importance to the game, telling the Jamaica Observer, the focus was still on the third round that is set to get underway soon.

Ironically, FC Reno is the only team that have won the mid-season and overall titles in the same year, but Hyde, a newcomer to the competition, said he did not think about those statistics.

“I don’t know about that and I don’t think about those things,” he said on Sunday. “We just took this as another game, almost like practice as for us the focus is on the next round now.”

He did say, however, that he was pleased with the progress of his players.

“This was a good win for us and I love how we played for most parts of the game. I loved how we passed the ball, how we moved the ball around and they [players] are learning. It’s a short time we have them together, but they are grasping what we have been teaching them and they can only get better but we see some good signs today,” noted Hyde.

Graham said the game was a good platform to measure his young team.

“This was not a pressure situation…we have a young team and it will take some time for them to play how we want them to play, but its a step in the right direction. There was no disgrace in the loss today, we have some work to do with our physical conditioning, we need to step it up some more and get then to another level of fitness and then hopefully they will start playing better and maintain focus,” he said.

Back on the field of play, Thompson was well-placed to fire the ball past goalkeeper Robert Morrison from close range in the ninth minute to give FC Reno the lead, snapping Falmouth United’s five-game run without conceding a goal.

Two minutes later Falmouth United yanked Val Armstrong and replaced him with Gaye, who repaid the coach’s confidence when he pulled them level, pouncing on a loose ball from a corner to punch it into the low, right hand corner in the 17th minute.

Thompson had a good chance to restore FC Reno’s lead when he missed a sitter in the 27th minute after getting by the goalkeeper and the last defender, but he hesitated and allowed the defence to come back and block his weak shot.

Falmouth United took the lead in the 38th minute when a lightning fast counter-attack down the right side by Chevoy Watkins, who crossed the ball to a wide open Campbell who had the time to side foot the ball into goal from about six yards out.

Patrick Shecklude had a chance to add to the score but the Falmouth United striker missed a wide open goal on the stroke of half-time.

Green finally got the third goal, in the 56th minute, when he pounced on a ball that fell from the FC Reno goalkeeper’s hands and powered it into the goal to wrap up the title.

— Paul Reid