CHAPELTON, Clarendon—Phoenix Chapelton Maroon are finding their footing once again, securing their second consecutive win on Sunday, defeating Harbour View 2-1 at the Turners Oval after going eight games without a win in the Wray and Nephew Jamaican Premier League.

Manning Cup leading goalscorer Sean Leighton found the winner in the 85th minute for Phoenix Chapelton after Rohan Brown (65th) had cancelled out Zhaine Pinnocks’s second-minute strike.

It was the second win for Phoenix Chapelton this week, following their 1-0 win over Treasure Beach on Thursday, and they jumped two places to seventh on 18 points. The Donovan Duckie-coached team is just out of a playoff spot on goal difference.

“We started the season with a bang, so to speak, winning three on the track, then after we fell off as our form dipped. We had some bad results. But Melissa came and sort of allowed us to do some self-reflection, self-introspection,” Duckie told Observer Online.

“The players started putting shoulder to the wheel and in terms of the management side, things started to even improve. So we started pulling together as a group,” he noted.

Phoenix Chapelton started with wins over Tivoli Gardens (2-1), Harbour View (2-0) and Portmore United (3-2). But then went on a downward spiral, losing 0-1 to Arnett Gardens, drawing 0-0 with promoted Spanish Town Police and that was followed by a 0-3 defeat at the hands of Waterhouse FC.

The losing streak didn’t stop there as they lost 1-2 to Montego Bay United, 1-3 to Mount Pleasant and 0-3 to Cavalier. With 0-0 draw in between to Racing United and Dunbeholden and slipped perilously close to the relegation zone.

But they turned it around and stopped the bleeding, beating Treasure Beach 1-0 before welcoming new Director of Football Kyle Butler to the fore with a very good 2-1 win the 2022 champions Harbour View.

“We are not just trying to participate in the league. The first objective is to get into the top six, then try to be consistent. So, that is important for us,” Duckie pointed out.

“We want to be competitive and to be competitive, you have to stay around mid-table or above mid-table going into the last round of the Premier League. We’re in it to win it, but there’s a pathway to doing that,” he added.

“Kudos to the players, kudos to the staff, our owners, they’re there with us. Craig Butler, continues to support us. So to win this game means a lot to us, means a lot for the confidence.”

“That’s very important for the mindset of the players going forward. Lifts our spirit and sets us on a pathway where we can even push further for the top six. If you look at mid-table, the points are close. So, we need some points to move away from there,” said Duckie.

Sunday’s results are:

Racing United 0, Waterhouse FC 0

Treasure Beach FC 1, Montego Bay United 2

Molynes United 0, Mount Pleasant 0