Head coach of Tivoli Gardens, Jerome Waite, believes his team will have to be fully prepared as they’re now viewed as a threat in the Wray & Nephew Jamaica Premier League.

The West Kingston-based club takes on Cavalier today at the Anthony Spaulding Sports Complex at 3:00 pm in one of five rescheduled games from match week two.

Tivoli are currently third in the table on 17 points and have only suffered defeat twice in their nine games so far.

However, Waite says they will need to be focused if they are to continue their good form.

“One thing you have to understand, all teams start to assess the Tivoli team and it will not be free flowing going forward. We will have to work overtime to continue to dig deep to get points. These players, we will have to continue to work with them and build their confidence because you still have one or two players that have low self-esteem in terms of the game but we just have to continue working with them,” he said.

Last season’s beaten finalists Cavalier are coming off a 1-0 defeat to Portmore United on Sunday where they missed two penalties. They’ve not kept a clean sheet since the start of the season but have lost just two games this season from their seven outings and a win could potentially push them into the top six.

Despite the current mood in the team, Head Coach Rudolph Speid is hoping his team can make a statement against a tough Tivoli team.

“After missing two penalties [against Portmore], our confidence is down to a low and Tivoli are playing really good so we’re not sure what to expect. I mean, I’m not sure which Cavalier will turn up but it’s something we’re working on. As usual, we’ll come out and give a good account of ourselves and get a positive result,” said Speid.

“We just need to focus some more and keep a clean sheet but otherwise from that, we have a pretty good system that we work with. We just need to get back efficient, we’ve been wayward, missing a lot of goals and conceding goals in every game so we need to fix that,” he added.

THURSDAY’S GAMES

Cavalier vs Tivoli Gardens @ Anthony Spaulding Complex

Treasure Beach vs Mount Pleasant @ STETHS

Portmore vs Lime Hall @ Ferdie Neita Park

Vere vs Harbour View @ Wembley Centre

Dunbeholden vs Humble Lion @ Ashenheim Stadium

(All games scheduled to start at 3:00 pm)