Cavalier and Waterhouse will take 1-0 advantages to the second legs of the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) playoffs after narrow wins in their first leg matches, at the Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence, on Saturday.
With the game seemingly drifting towards a scoreless draw, Colin Anderson left entered the field of play to make a telling impact. Just 30 seconds after replacing Shaniel Thomas, Anderson was played through on goal by Nickache Murray and sprinted onto the brilliant through ball to round Tivoli goalkeeper Kewong Watkins and slot into an empty net to give Cavalier a precious first-leg lead.
The second match between Waterhouse and Mount Pleasant was a similarly cagey affair with both sides crafting good opportunities to take the lead. It was Waterhouse who took one late on, however, when Shaquille Bradford was set up by Kymani Campbell. The angle was a difficult one but his fierce shot managed to creep through the legs of goalkeeper Shaven Paul at his near post, in the 79th minute. Paul will, however, be slightly disappointed having been up to what would have been considered by many to be more difficult efforts throughout the match.
The teams will meet at the same venue on Wednesday for the second leg starting at 2:30pm.