Brittons Hill hand Paradise first loss

Kickstart Rush are now the only unbeaten team in the Barbados Football Association Premier League, after Brittons Hill United handed Paradise their first defeat of the season on Sunday at the Wildey Technical Centre.

Paradise made a bright start in the second match of the triple-header, taking the lead in the third minute through Sheran Hoyte. The Barbados international continued his good scoring form, registering his fifth goal in three matches since returning to the squad following a brief stint in Trinidad.

Vincentian star Steven Pierre then missed a glorious chance to equalise for Brittons Hill ten minutes later, but having received a good ball at the edge of the box, he shot high and wide, without troubling Paradise goalie Jireh Malcom. 

Seconds later, however, the Vincentian striker capitalised on a defensive mistake from Paradise, to stroke the ball confidently past Malcolm and atone for his earlier mistake.

End to end action continued during the opening minutes of the clash and in the 16th minute, Brittons Hill goalkeeper Shaquille Frank, made a good save down low to his left to deny Paradise. 

At the opposite end of the pitch, Shaquile Boyce received a defense splitting ball, but with no power in his shot, it was easily saved by Malcom.

The game remained locked at a goal apiece until the 63rd minute, when Tshane Lorde headed Brittons Hill into the lead with his 5th goal of the season.

Paradise immediately pressed for an equaliser, but with a penalty given for handball in the 74th minute, Brittons Hill extended the lead to 3-1 as Frank was clinical from the spot.

There was a final twist in the third minute of additional time as Jaron Oughterson scored for Paradise, but Brittons Hill ultimately sealed a hard fought 3-2 win.

Coach Richard Forde was ecstatic after the game and believes it was one the best performances he’s ever gotten from his side. “This was a good game and if we continue to play football like this, on the international scene we will be recognised.”

Forde says the genesis of the victory was the training sessions in the build up. “This was a lot of work with these boys out on the pasture to help them to understand how to be organized and how not to be running all over the place.”

He added, “This was one out of the top draw, I’m telling you this one was out of the top drawer. It was a magnificent game that we played tonight.”

The nightcap game saw Kickstart Rush taking on arch rivals Weymouth Wales for the first time this season and a cagey opening 15 minutes, saw neither side dominating possession.

Both sides had chances to break the deadlock before half time, but with no goals before the break, the tempo intensified immediately in the second half. Seconds after the resumption, Wales had a shot cleared off the line following a corner.

In the 73rd minute, Wales defender Akeem Hill found himself unmarked in the Kickstart box after a free kick, but his snap shot from six yards out as he turned, went high and wide.

It was a theme that continued in the final 15 minutes for Wales as Romario Harewood and Jaheim Neblett both had chances to score. Paradise also went close in the closing seconds of the game, but ultimately the two sides would settle for a goalless draw. 

For Kickstart coach Renaldo Gilkes, the draw represented two points lost. “I mean based on the two final opportunities that we had there, I would say that we should have won, but as you know, Wales are worthy opponents.”

“They are the reigning kings of the Premier League, the perennial kings of Barbados football over the last couple of years. So as a positive result, we remain the only unbeaten team in the league, which is something to build on, but we would have liked to get the three points tonight to get to the top of the table.”

Earlier in the opening game, UWI continued their resurgence with a 1-0 victory over Bagatelle. After a slow start to the season, a third consecutive win saw them move up to nine points.

Jadon McCollin got the lone goal of the game in the 46th minute.

Kickstart Rush is now the only unbeaten team in the Barbados Football Association’s Premier League, after Brittons Hill United upset table leaders Paradise at the Wildey Technical Centre on Sunday.

Playing in the second game of the triple header, Paradise made a strong start, when Sheran Hoyte scored in the 3rd minute. It was the fifth goal in three games for the Barbados international, after his return to the squad following a short stint in Trinidad.

Assistant Coach Ricardo Goddard was happy after his side ground out the result.

“It was not too bad but I think we could have played with a bit more patience. 

However when you are in this part of the table, you want to win as much as you can. It was not pretty, but we got the three points,” he said.

Blackbirds uncharacteristically began the season with three defeats, but Goddard says it’s too early to say they have turned the corner performance wise.

He added: “It’s still way too early, because we still have a fair amount of work to do.  I don’t think the men are as fit as I think they should be, but as the season goes on, we could only get a little better. Right now we are actually rebuilding the team.” 

As a result of Sunday’s games, Paradise remained on 16 points at the top of the table, with Kickstart Rush now one point behind on 15. Ellerton completed the top three and remained on 13 points.

Brittons Hill have overtaken defending champions Wales to move into fourth on 13 points, while Wales drop to fifth on 12.

Three straight wins have seen UWI Blackbirds move up to 9 points, but they remain in sixth position, while Eyre’s Meat Shop Pride of Gall Hill are seventh also on six points and Bagatelle eighth on five points.

St Andrew Lions remain ninth on four points, while bottom of the table Wotton have yet to register a point

kurtishinds@barbadostoday.bb