With Mount Pleasant Football Academy firm favourites to reach the final of the Concacaf Caribbean Cup, Head Coach Theodore Whitmore believes this is a huge step for the club and football in Jamaica.

On Wednesday, 2023 Jamaica Premier League champions Mount Pleasant hammered hosts Defence Force FC of Trinidad and Tobago 5-1 in their first-leg semi-final match at the Hasely Crawford Stadim in Port of Spain.

Raheem Edwards scored a brace, while Reggae Boyz striker Warner Brown, Shaqueil Bradford and Kimoni Bailey added one each, giving the St Ann-based club a nearly insurmountable lead ahead of Wednesday’s second-leg contest at the National Stadium in Jamaica.

It was a commanding win over the champions of Trinidad’s top flight and Whitmore says proper planning was vital to Mount Pleasant’s victory.

“I think Defence Force is a pretty decent team [with] decent players. I think our technical staff would have done a lot more work on the Defence Force team and we didn’t give them a lot of look-ins,” he said. “We didn’t allow them to play how we knew they could have played. I think we eliminated their game plan and ours worked.”

While happy Mount Pleasant have one foot in the final, Whitmore believes their execution could have been much better. He was also gutted that their perfect defensive record came to an end after keeping four clean sheets prior.

“There were some aspects of the game that did not please me. I think we [needed] to make better decisions in the final third of the pitch and I think we could have scored more, and my other disappointment is conceding.

“We didn’t want to concede a goal tonight, it’s kind of heartbreaking. Not to take away the five goals that we have scored and come away with those, but it’s a competition [in which] we want to keep clean sheets,” he said.

Mount Pleasant are set to become just the second Jamaican team in history to qualify for the Caribbean Cup final, joining rivals and reigning champions Cavalier FC who made it in the previous two years.

Whitmore said their appearance in the final highlights the progress Jamaican football has made at the regional level.

“We don’t want to get overconfident. We have a job to do, we have to be professional, we carry on the work and look forward to next week to go and finish off the job. But again, this victory — the people of Jamaica deserve it and the St Ann fans deserve it as well,” he said.

“We are the only club representing Jamaica, so I think it’s really for Jamaicans to get behind us come next week.”

Advancing to the final will also mean that Mount Pleasant would secure qualification to the Concacaf Champions Cup where they would potentially go up against top clubs in the United States, Mexico, Canada and Central America.

Mount Pleasant FA’s Fitzroy Cummings (left) and goalscorer Warner Brown embrace during their 5-1 win over Defence Force FC in the Concacaf Caribbean Cup first-leg semi-final contest at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, on Wednesday. (Photo: Concacaf)

Mount Pleasant FA’s starting team pose for a photo ahead of the Concacaf Caribbean Cup first-leg semi-final against Defence Force FC on Wednesday. Photo: Concacaf

Mount Pleasant Football Academy Head Coach Theodore Whitmore (left) and Assistant Coach Davion Ferguson