Montego Bay United drew 1-1 with Tivoli Gardens in a dramatic encounter at Sabina Park on Monday night to win the two-legged quarter-final tie 3-2 on aggregate in the Wray and Nephew Jamaica Premier League.

Montego Bay advance to the semi-final where they will play the number one seed Mount Pleasant on Thursday.

The Paul “Tegat” Davis-coached team came into the second leg with a 2-1 advantage and never looked like relinquishing it as they contained Tivoli Gardens quite comfortably.

The first half ended without drama, but the second period exploded in the 73rd minute after Montego Bay United missed a penalty.

A piercing run into the box by Jourdaine Fletcher resulted in him being bundled over by Barrington Pryce. Fletcher dusted himself off, but his weak kick was blocked by goalkeeper Nicholas Clarke.

Fortunately, the rebound came straight to Fletcher, but from inside the six-yard box, he belted his shot hard and high, unbelievably over the bar.

Then, for some strange reason, Clarke turned from hero to zero as he went to argue with referee Osane Nation and picked up a red card after he bumped into him.

In the ensuing madness, Tivoli’s goalkeeping coach Edsel Scott – known for getting red cards during his playing career – also picked up a red card.

Things got worse for Tivoli as they went down to nine men in the 82nd minute when Lennox Russell was sent off for hitting the goalkeeper, who was out of his box and was trying to get back into his goal.

At this point, bottles began to rain onto the field from sections of the Tivoli fans, which halted play temporarily.

Tivoli were still in the game and the tie until the 86th minute, when Montego Bay substitute Brain Brown latched onto an Owayne Gordon’s through pass and slipped the ball through the legs of substitute goalkeeper Nathaniel Francis, making it 1-0 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate.

It seemed game over but Tivoli substitutes Rodico Wellington and goalscorer Malik Cocking combined to score in the 90+3 minute.

However, it was a case of too little, too late for Tivoli. Despite the game finishing 1-1, it was an easy 3-2 aggregate win for Montego Bay who advanced to their first semi-final since they last won in 2016.

H.W.