ALTHOUGH being viewed somewhat as underdogs, Waterhouse FC and Arnett Gardens FC will be hoping to topple this season’s top two teams, Mount Pleasant Academy and Cavalier FC, respectively, in their second-leg semi-final matches of the Wray & Nephew Jamaica Premier League play-offs at Sabina Park on Sunday evening.

In the opening match at 5:oo pm Waterhouse take on defending champions Mount Pleasant Academy with the aggregate scored locked at 1-1.

It was the for the third game this season Waterhouse was unable to get by their opponents but it was their eighth game without defeat. Ironically, their last defeat in the league was against Mount Pleasant in early March.

However, Head Coach Marcel Gayle has been pleased with his team’s progress since then and is hoping to take things one step further by advancing to the final.

“We had to be perfect [last Sunday]; we weren’t perfect but we were good in most parts,” he said. “We blocked the threats from Mount Pleasant and forced them into long ball, hence the second half we came out and got the go-ahead goal. Unfortunately, we gave up a goal in that period [because of] poor concentration but this is the best team in the competition and we kept our nerve. It’s just unfortunate we couldn’t get [the win].

“Things take time to manifest so we were toiling, having a roller coaster ride. We were putting the puzzle together, putting players in areas, trying different ways in how we can get better. We’re getting better; this is our ninth game in a row [unbeaten] and we hope to continue in this vein. The team is coming together at the right time. [We] just need to put away our chances [in order to advance].”

Mount Pleasant Head Coach Theodore Whitmore wants his team to make back-to-back finals but, despite not losing to Waterhouse all season, says they can’t underestimate their opponents.

“The first part of the season is already done,” he said. “It’s the semi-final mode and everybody is looking towards it. There’s no easy game so, again, we have to come [today] and put our best foot forward so we can get the desired result. Based on what we’re doing [making the final] is achievable but, again, it’s just one game at a time. We’ve completed the first half of the two-legged tie and [we’re] now looking forward to the next leg.”

In the second game of the double-header, at 8:00 pm, it will also be do or die between Arnett Gardens and Cavalier after a 1-1 stalemate in the first leg.

Arnett’s captain and leading goalscorer Fabian Reid is an injury doubt after being substituted minutes into the second half last week, but Head Coach Xavier Gilbert is hoping he can make a contribution this evening.

“He trained [Saturday] morning,” Gilbert said. “He’s going to undergo a fitness test before we make a final decision [this evening]. He has been getting treatment every single day — sometimes twice a day — and, to be honest, he will be considered for sure, so he’s in the squad.”

Gilbert, though, is urging the rest of his team to step up as they look to edge Cavalier who they haven’t beaten all season.

“We have had conversation with the frontline in what to do and how to do it, and everyone is in sync,” he said. “Everyone understands what is at stake and what needs to happen and, hopefully, we can come out better than we did last time because it wasn’t good enough to get us to win.

“We definitely have to curtail their strengths. They’re a team that plays a lot in transition so the moment we turn over the ball, they coming right back at you. So, we have to close down certain areas, close down certain spaces, and we have to force them into areas they are not as potent. That’s what we want to do and, hopefully, we can execute as best as possible and at the end of the day, give us the win.”

Rudolph Speid’s Cavalier is looking to make consecutive finals, and he says they are prepared for whatever Arnett throws at them.

“The preparation has been to make sure we’re prepared for whatever they come with,” he said. “They might employ different tactics after seeing what we did [last Sunday] so we’re prepared for whatever. We’re a flexible team; we can play like how we played in the first leg and we can also play differently, so that’s really what we’re going to be doing. Last week they played 4-4-2 but they’ve been known to play 4-3-3 so we’ll be prepared for whatever they come with.”