Photo: Jeffery Henry of Waterhouse FC makes a tackle on Claudious Blackburn of Marverley/Hughenden during their Red Stripe Premier League match at the Waterhouse Mini-Stadium on Sunday. Waterhouse won the game 2-1 to move above their rivals and out of the relegation zone.
Rodave Murray came off the bench to score a dramatic late winner for Waterhouse FC in a feisty “Boulevard” derby against Marverley/Hughenden at the Waterhouse Mini-stadium on Sunday.
Murray who had been on the field for only a minute, scored from just inside the area to earn his team a 2-1 win in a game that saw four players, two from either team, receiving red cards.
The game was played at Drewsland despite being a Marverley home game, and the fans packed inside the stadium despite steady rainfall for most of the day. The weather broke shortly before match time but the playing conditions were tough in the soft underfoot conditions.
Rodico Wellington tested Diego Haughton with a free kick from 25 yards with just four minutes on the clock, but the Waterhouse custodian was equal to the task.
A lofted effort from Andrew Whyte six minutes later had Haughton desperately backing up, but the goalkeeper was happy to see the ball land safely behind his goal.
Despite having the better of play in the opening minutes, Marverley went behind after a big blunder by their goalkeeper George Brown in the 20th minute. The former Waterhouse keeper should have completed a routine clearance but struck the ball straight at Neicko Williams who chased down a hopeless cause. The ball ricocheted toward goal and Williams kept his focus to slot home from an acute, angle into an empty net.
Marveley’s response was immediate as Denardo “Venom” Thomas scored with a venomous shot two minutes later to draw his team level.
Wellington got the better of Jeffery Henry, turning the big defender, before leaving him on his haunches, then passing to Thomas whose sweetly struck shot curled into the top left corner of the net, giving Haughton no chance.
Wellington was soon in the thick of things again for Marverley, firing just over the top after being played in by Cladious Blackburn.
In true derby fashion, Waterhouse pushed up the field and created a chance of their own but DeAndre Brown fired just high from 23 yards.
The last chance of the half fell to Brown, but again he failed to hit the target, this time from edge of the area.
With both teams desperate for all three points, the second half saw a flurry of cards which eventually resulted in four dismissals.
First Wellington was given a straight red for violent conduct for hitting Miller in the face in the 68th minute.
Waterhouse capitalized on the man advantage when Murray calmly slotted home following a classic counterattack. Haughton collected a long ball that was floated into the area and released substitute Kemar Beckford near the Waterhouse goal area. Beckford drove through the midfield skipping two challenges before passing to Williams midway the Marverley half. Williams then found Murray on the left side of the box and the former DaCosta Cup star coolly slotted home between the legs of George, to make it 2-1 with eight minutes left on the clock.
Three minutes later Henry was given his marching orders after receiving a second yellow card for a late tackle, to remove the man advantage for his team.
The drama continued until the 90th minute when Roberto Fletcher of Marverley and Shaquille Dyer of Waterhouse were given straight red cards for fighting. It took referee Odette Brown about five minutes to clear the field after a pitch invasion that required police help to get sorted out.
The final whistle brought an end to a dramatic evening but more importantly saw a change in position for both teams. Waterhouse are finally out of the relegation zone, moving up to 10th place on 22 points, swapping positions with their opponents Marverley who slip to 11th place while remaining on 21points.
For Waterhouse coach Glendon Bailey it was a much needed win that was a long time coming.
“The team played with a lot of passion and determination today. It was a good game but we got a little indisciplined towards the end. We were very effective in playing football today. The win finally puts us out of the red, we move around Marverley now and we have to keep moving forward.”
Bailey however bemoaned the fact that he would be required to change his team again.
“I am extremely happy for the win, but again I will have to change the team for the next match because we lost two players to suspension today.”
For Anthony Patrick it was a missed opportunity for his Marverley team.
“We should have put the game to bed when we went 1-1 but we missed our chance to do so. Indiscipline crept in towards the end of the match and the officiating was poor.”
The results have not gone the way Patrick would have liked since taking over at the club late last year, but he has a complete round of eleven matches to take the club away from the danger zone. Staying up will be priority one for a club that just returned to top flight football after more than 20 years in the wilderness.
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