ST JAMES, Jamaica — Mount Pleasant FA head coach Theodore Whitmore says he is not overly concerned about back-to-back drawn results to start the Jamaica Premier League season after they gave up a second-half lead to end 1-1 against Molynes United at Montego Bay Sports Complex.

After being held 2-2 at home by Montego Bay United in their opening game, Mount Pleasant were pegged back by Molynes on Monday, despite dominating possession and the scoring opportunities in the game.

Mount Pleasant had appeared on the way to their first win when Shaqueil Bradford came off the bench to give them the lead in the 53rd minute, but Marlon Pennicooke equalised five minutes later from the penalty spot.

The result left the St Ann-based club — finalist in the last three seasons — in an unfamiliar ninth place in the league standing with two points. Molynes, who had lost their opening game, are in 11th place on one point.

“It is two points lost, but we have to be thankful. Again, it is still early in the season and we are still trying to get into a rhythm,” Whitmore said. “We are playing in two competitions and we still have not been able to do some things that we want but such is the nature of the game,” he said in reference to Mount Pleasant’s participation in the Concacaf Caribbean Cup.

They have won both games so far in the regional club competition to lead their group, and they are yet to concede a goal.

Jermaine Thomas, the Molynes United head coach, was pleased with the outcome.

“We worked hard all week. We lost the Waterhouse game and it really hurt us because we knew what we were doing in the preseason, and it was really unfortunate.

“We bounced back. The guys responded well, and tonight we came out and we really dug in and really played well,” he said.

Thomas added: “[The plan was] to deny Mount Pleasant the central areas. We wanted them to go long, and tonight they went long, and we defended the long balls well. We competed and we recovered the balls in the middle third and tried to transition from that. We did sometimes, and it worked, but sometimes it never [did]. But guess what, 1-1 away from home, I think the result is a good one.”

Molynes fought doggedly from the outset and were able to repel whatever Mount Pleasant threw at them but lost their concentration early in the second half and paid for it.

The Molynes defence failed to get a loose ball away and Bradford was on it in a flash. With only a tight space to work with, he got off an acrobatic shot from just on the edge of the area, putting the ball into the corner of the goal.

The celebrations lasted mere minutes before Molynes United earned a penalty when a foul was committed just inside the 18-yard box. Pennicooke gave goalkeeper Tafari Chambers no chance from the spot.

Mount Pleasant had a good chance to snatch a win late but the Molynes goalkeeper Tyreece Brown pulled off a brilliant save, sticking up his left hand to block a point-blank header.

Mount Pleasant FA’s Warner Brown (left) and Molynes United’s Gerald Neil challenge for the ball during the Jamaica Premier League match at Montego Bay Sports Complex in St James on Monday. The game ended 1-1. (Photo: Paul Reid)

WHITMORE… it is still early in the season and we are still trying to get into a rhythm