Coach puzzled after Lime Hall slump to another defeat
Newcomers Lime Hall Academy will have to wait a while longer for their first-ever win in the Wray & Nephew Jamaica Premier League as they were thrashed 1-4 by Vere United at Stadium East on Sunday.
The St Ann-based Lime Hall found themselves behind as early as the 16th minute after conceding a penalty which Vere’s Captain Javier Brown converted.
However, they responded within three minutes as Dario Stewart’s long-range strike from about 30 yards flew into the bottom corner to make it 1-1.
They went into the half-time break level but lost control of the game in the second half. Goalkeeper Williams was fooled for the second time in the match as the returning Kemar Beckford, who spent the last two seasons in El Salvador, fired in a low curling free kick in the 48th minute to put Vere ahead for the second time.
Matters were made worse for Lime Hall as Vere substitute Alrick Maitland slotted home from close range in minute 63, giving the Clarendon-based club a 3-1 lead.
Captain Brown would add further misery as his effort from distance sealed the win for Vere.
When asked by the Jamaica Observer about what changed in the second half for Lime Hall, Coach Alfred Barnett was left puzzled.
“That is what I’m trying to figure out and all throughout the game, I was trying to figure out what has gone from playing the first half the way we did to coming out in the second half like we did. We went in [half-time], we had a good chat, their legs were supposed to be a little more replenished where they can come out and move a lot more, much quicker to the ball but I don’t know. They just come and sit back and when they gave up the second goal, everybody’s heads went down,” said Barnett.
It was more positive outlook for Vere’s Head Coach Linval Dixon who was pleased with his team after suffering back-to-back losses prior to the match.
“The first half, there was a little bit of chaos on the field because nobody listened to each other and everybody got frustrated with each other. Yes, we had two bad games leading up to this game but we had a meeting to tell them that teams all over the world have a bad patch. So we just have to get ourselves recharged and we did that. The difference was players started to listen to each other and play and work for each other, hence we scored four goals and could have scored more,” said Dixon.
The win pushes Vere to eight points while Lime Hall remain winless from their six fixtures.
The league continues on Monday, starting with Montego Bay United tackling champions Mount Pleasant at Wespow Park at 3:00 pm. The double-header at Stadium East will see Waterhouse battling Humble Lion at 5:00 pm and Portmore United taking on Tivoli Gardens at 7:30 pm.