Spanish Town Police stay positive amidst relegation battle
Despite Spanish Town Police remaining at the bottom of the Wray & Nephew Jamaica Premier League table, Head Coach O’Neil “Bigga” Thompson believes they’re improving as a team as they bid to stave off relegation.
Spanish Town Police played out a goalless draw with Tivoli Gardens FC on Sunday at Royal Lakes Complex.
The St Catherine-based club played the entire second half with a man advantage after Tivoli midfielder Tkiven Garnett was sent off just before half-time. However, they were unable to make the breakthrough as both teams shared the points.
“I think [Tivoli Gardens] have some okay players like [Nickalia] Fuller and [Anthony] Nelson — these are people who can damage you. I think we didn’t capitalise on the advantage and sometimes 10 men feel like 12,” Thompson said.
“But it’s a point and a clean sheet, so there’s a lot of positives we can take from the game and we’ll continue to work. I think coming in front of goal, we still are a bit off and that’s the area that we have been working on for a while, and we’ll continue to work on those areas.”
The debutants have found life difficult in the JPL, losing 17 of their 26 games while registering just five wins.
They sit in the relegation zone in 14th on 19 points, six points from safety. However, Thompson, who joined the club at the end of January, says he’s hopeful of their future after seeing encouraging signs.
“These are points that people count against us. Tivoli are one of the teams that are vying for the top six spots, so to get a point regardless of the numbers, I think it’s a positive direction and we’ll build on this. We’ll go back to the drawing board and look at areas that continue to [elude] us,” said Thompson.
Though getting a draw away from home with a man short, Tivoli Gardens Head Coach Jerome Waite wasn’t as positive as Thompson.
“I think it’s a loss,” he said. “You’re up against a team that is pretty much struggling — they’re at the bottom of the table”.
“These players have to understand: If you want to be in the top six, you will have to win these games, [but] points [are eluding] us.”
SUNDAY’S RESULTS
Spanish Town Police 0, Tivoli Gardens 0
Portmore 4, Harbour View 2
Phoenix Chapelton 2, Dunbeholden 0
Treasure Beach 0, Cavalier 1
Jerome Waite, Tivoli Gardens head coach Photo: Garfield Robinson
