Photo: Juvaune Benjamin scored the game winner for Waterhouse in their 2-1 win over Arnett Gardens to book a spot in the final of the Red Stripe Premier League.
Regular season Red Stripe Premier League winners Waterhouse prevailed 2-1 over Arnett Gardens in their return leg semi-finals at the Anthony Spaulding Sports Complex on Monday night to seal their spot in the final against Montego Bay United.
The excitement from the expectant fans was already at fever pitch before the first whistle as fans mostly dressed in red and black packed into the stadium. The handful of Waterhouse faithful that made the trek stood out clearly, not the least of which was Jermaine “Tuffy” Anderson who was on hand to support his former teammates.
The match got off to a cracking pace and Arnett could have opened the scoring as early as the fourth minute when Leon Strickland put in a cross that was palmed away by the returning Richard “Spoon” McCallum in goal for Waterhouse. The ball almost fell kindly for Kirk Ramsey but Nicholy Finlayson scrambled the ball clear.
Less than sixty seconds later, the visitors were ahead thanks to their captain Damarley Samuels who blasted home from close range pass a hapless Damion Hyatt in the Arnett goal.
The early goal shook Arnett Gardens and Waterhouse took the game to the home team denying them room in midfield with Vincent Earle, Romario Campbell and Samuels dominating the middle of the park, keeping the Arnett Gardens backline marshalled by Oniel “Bigga” Thompson on their toes.
Waterhouse were denied a second in the 20th minute by the width of the post, Juvaune Benjamin fired on target only to see his effort rebound off the right upright with the goal keeper well beaten.
Waterhouse were denied again in the 29th minute after Earle did well to pick out Benjamin inside the area and the forward watched in agony as his goal bound effort was cleared off the line by a retreating Fabian Reid.
Two more, clear cut chances were missed by Waterhouse a minute apart in the 33rd and 34th minutes respectively. First Samuels delivered a perfect cross to the far post from the right side for Kenroy Howell, but the forward skewed his effort wide of the target. Next it was the turn of the unlucky Benjamin who scooped his effort over the crossbar from the six yard line when picked out by Hughan Gray.
Three minutes before half time another chance was created through the Gray-Benjamin combination with the latter managing to clear the crossbar once more.
Arnett Gardens were almost spectators on their home ground as they failed to seriously trouble McCallum in the Waterhouse goal for the entire first half. To their credit the central defensive pair of Finlayson and Omar Walcott had nullified the dangerous Ramsey who had scored two goals in the first half of the first leg for Arnett Gardens just five days earlier.
The visitors picked up where they left off in the second half, Benjamin stinging the palms of the goal keeper in the 47th minute before a shot from distance from Earle saw the keeper getting down smartly to his left to parry around the post for a corner.
Jerome Waite, coach of Arnett Gardens made a double change in the 51st minute bringing in Marcelino Blackburn and Kemal Malcolm and the substitutes made an immediate impact on the game.
Arnett was awarded a free kick near the edge of the area in the 54th minute after Finlayson had received a yellow card for dangerous play and Blackburn stepped up and fired the shot into the area. Malcolm’s faint redirect steered the ball past the despairing dive of McCallum and into the net. Cue wild scenes of celebrations from the home crowd that included fireworks which brightened up the night sky.
Midway the half, Ramsey finally got his first shot on target but it was straight at McCallum who gathered easily. Moments later Benjamin was profiting from a knock down from substitute Marvin Morgan but Hyatt dived smartly to his right to gather the ball.
Benjamin must have been wondering if he would ever get on the score sheet after coming so close on so many occasions. Those fears were laid to rest with fifteen minutes left in the game when a beautifully flighted pass to the back post from Grau was met by the head of Benjamin who made no mistake this time, burying the ball inside the near post to make the score 2-1.
Benjamin would have a chance to kill off the game five minutes from time but despite failing to beat the Hyatt this time around the two goals scored by his team proved decisive in the end.
Waterhouse assistant coach Marcel Gayle credited tactical discipline for the win, “All credit to the team. They played a tactically better game than they did on Thursday (in the first leg). That was the difference tonight. They were more aware of what Arnett was doing and they were more prepared to deal with it.
“We could have killed off the game from the first half but credit to Arnett, they pushed us all the way, but we are grateful to be in the final and now we must get prepared for that against a very tough opponent,” Gayle concluded.
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