Kemar Beckford scored just his second goal of the season for Mount Pleasant FA as they overcame their bogey team, Cavalier FC, 3-2 in the Jamaica Premier League on Friday.

Beckford scored in the 31st minute to put his team 2-0 ahead and build on the lead provided by Jourdaine Fletcher in the 16th minute, only to see the deficit cut in half by Shaniel Thomas three minutes before the interval.

Daniel Green restored the Mount Pleasant two-goal lead in the 86th minute before Ronaldo Webster made it a tricky finish in added time, when he made it 3-2 in the 90+4 minute.

Beckford has been the leading scorer for Mount Pleasant for the past two seasons and said he went into the contest determined to get on the scoresheet.

“I went into the game on Friday with the mindset that I had to score. To be a leader you have to lead from the front, so I had to work hard from the first whistle.”

He credited his teammates for enabling to get the goal on Friday.

“I have to give my teammates the credit because they played together and throughout the game, we worked very hard. We played a great game against Cavalier.

“Playing against Cavalier is not an easy task. We always have a difficult time against them.”

Beckford was pleased with the finish of his team against a Cavalier team that they always seem to struggle against.

“It’s not how you start, but how you finish and (Friday) we finished strong, so I have to give my teammates the credit,” he said.

With two games left in the regular season and the teams tightly bunched at the top of the table, the former Reggae Boy says that the players must focus on the task at hand.

“It’s crunch time now and we have two games left. We have to keep focused and play each game as a final. We have to put out the work and work for each other. We have to stick together, be humble and work hard every match day.”

“The win was a very important one, because if you look on the table everyone is so close, so we have to take every game as a final, stick together, so we take it game-by-game to be the number one on the table.”

Mount Pleasant announced a few days ago that Cardel Benbow has left the club and Beckford admits that he will have to work a lot harder for the rest of season.

“I think I have a lot of work to do right now, because to lose a player like that, the leader in assists for the team.”

He also admits that Benbow’s departure has affected him on a personal level as well.

“It’s very difficult for me, but we have to look forward. I played with Cardel from Waterhouse and then we went to Mount Pleasant and it was a pleasure. I wish him all the best in his new journey and I hope everything works out for him.

“It’s a very difficult time for me, to lose a friend like that on the field and off the field.”

On a more positive note, Beckford thinks that his team is rounding into shape at the right time and are poised to lift the premier league title for the first time.

“I think we are playing good football, but we have to take every game as a final to be champions. We are finding the form to go in the play-offs, we are playing wonderful football, how the coaching staff wants us to play.

“It can only get better going into the play-offs for us to become champions of the Jamaica Premier League.”

Mount Pleasant will close out their regular season with two difficult fixtures against league leaders Vere United with whom they are tied on 14 points, but separated by goal difference and top six team, Dunbeholden FC.