CATHERINE HALL, St James – Montego Bay United’s (MBU) Coach Nedier Dos Santos thinks his mid-table team deserved to beat title contenders Mt Pleasant FA in Monday’s Jamaica Premier League return-round game at the Montego Bay Sports Complex.

MBU came within three minutes of avenging their first-round 5-1 thrashing from the St Ann club before they managed to salvage a point from the 2-2 draw that left Mt Pleasant FA in third place on 37 points, five points off the lead with a game in hand.

Mt Pleasant finished the game with 10 men after Shaquille Dyer was sent off after he was shown two yellow cards in the final 15 minutes of the game.

MBU, who had goals from Shaquile West and Nevaun Turner, created a little more space in 10th place as they moved to 23 points after a sixth-straight draw.

“Yes, I think we should have won, I think so,” Dos Santos told the Jamaica Observer after the game. “Today, we did a very good game, the best game since I arrived; we played very competitively, but you see we…missed some chances…but anyhow, I think it was a promising performance. I like it [and] I’m proud of my players tonight,” said the Brazilian.

Dos Santos, who was in his third game with the team, made changes to his regular starting line-up, dropping striker Allan Ottey and defender Kevin Graham and giving the captain’s arm band to Johann Weatherly.

“I don’t have anything bad to talk about my players tonight, they did a wonderful performance against a very strong team,” Dos Santos said. “But we use the speed, we use the movements and speed and I mean, even the first half they scored a goal, a very lucky goal [as] the ball deflected.”

Theodore Whitmore, the Mt Pleasant coach, admitted that after four games without a win, there could be some cause for concern.

“The concern that I have currently is that I think we are conceding more [as] in the first half of the season we were a tough defensive unit that was hard to break down, so my only concern today and for the past few games is the way we have been conceding goals,” he reasoned.

Whitmore said his players ought to have been more polished at the offensive end.

“We could have been a bit more patient in the opponents’ final third, I think after we went behind we tried to rush the game a bit and I think we were a bit off, but I think its a point deserved.”

West gave MBU the lead in the ninth minute when he fired into an open goal after a cross from the left beat goalkeeper Daniel Russell at the near right post.

Mt Pleasant drew level in the 22nd minute when a shot from Odane Murray hit a MBU player and looped fortuitously over the head of goalkeeper Davonnie Burton and under the cross bar.

MBU were back ahead three minutes later when Courtney Allen was taken down just inside the Mt Pleasant 18-yard box and Turner calmly slotted the resulting penalty kick home.

Late in the game, MBU conceded back-to-back corners and failed to get one away and Sue-Lae McCalla, a second-half substitute forced the ball across the goal line.