WATERHOUSE FC secured their first win of the season by blanking Dunbeholden FC 2-0 in their Jamaica Premier League game at the UWI-JFF Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence yesterday.

Ramone Howell opened the scoring in the 66th minute and substitute Shaquille Bradford put the icing on the cake with a wonderful strike in the 90+1 minute.

Waterhouse jumped to the top of the league with four points, the same as Mount Pleasant but with a better goal difference.

St Catherine-based Dunbeholden, of whom a lot is expected because of their transfers this season, are at the bottom of the league and pointless from their two games.

It was a deserved win for Waterhouse who had the ball in the back of the net in the first half courtesy of Roshane Sharpe, but this was controversially ruled out for offside by Referee Steffon Dewar.

Dunbeholden also had the ball in the net and that, too, was ruled offside.

But Waterhouse would not be denied and the combination of brothers Kenroy and Ramone Howell broke the deadlock. In the 66th minute Ramone collected a pass from his brother Kenroy, following which his goal-bound effort from just outside the box took a wicked deflection and wrong-footed goalkeeper Damion Hyatt. It was the second-consecutive game that Hyatt was left stranded in goal resulting from a deflection that gave him no chance.

Substitute Colorado Murray headed just wide for Waterhouse in the 82nd minute but the team left the best for last as the former Camperdown High School star Shaquille Bradford scored, arguably, the goal of the season so far.

From a Dunbeholden free kick Bradford picked up the ball well inside his half and, on the counter attack, Waterhouse had three players to just one for Dunbeholden, but Bradford needed no help. He dribbled all the way, and with lone defender Shaquille Dyer back-pedalling, Bradford fired a powerful shot that flew past the bewildered Hyatt in goal off the underside of the crossbar and sealed the victory for Waterhouse.

Waterhouse Assistant Coach Damion Gordon was pleased with his team’s first win.

“We got a good display today and hopefully, we can continue like this,” he said.

Dunbeholden Assistant Coach Ricardo Smith was left despondent once again with his team’s performance for the second week running.

“We didn’t want to be in a position like this but we just have to work and come again,” he noted.