Defending champions Cavalier got the new Jamaica Premier League season underway with a win against Arnett Gardens FC in an enthralling encounter at the UWI-JFF Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence in Kingston.

Central defender, Jamoi Topey, gave Cavalier the lead in the 60^th minute before Chavany Willis got an equaliser that he thought would salvage a draw in the 96^th minute.

Cavalier forward Shaniel Thomas had other ideas as he slotted home a right-footed effort in the 97^th minute to secure a win and three points for the two-time champions.

The second match on Sunday was also an exciting one between four-time champions Waterhouse FC and Montego Bay United, who have also won the title four times.

Montego Bay United took the lead in the 57^th minute through Giovanni Reid before Waterhouse equalised in the 72^nd minute through an Andre Fletcher penalty.

Waterhouse completed the comeback in the 81^st minute through a goal from Devroy Grey.  The action then shifted to Monday, January 17 with two more matches.

Dunbeholden FC and Vere United FC contested the first game with Dunbeholden securing a 2-1 victory.

They took the lead in the eighth minute through an excellent header from Atapharoy Bygrave before Lampard Neil tied things up for Vere in the 57^th minute.

Substitute Jahmiel Hardware secured the three points for Dunbeholden with a well-placed free kick in the 92^nd minute.

In the second match, goals from Warner Brown in the 42^nd minute and Shai Smith in the 87^th minute ensured that five-time winners Tivoli Gardens FC and seven-time winners Portmore United FC played out a 1-1 draw.

On Tuesday, four-time champions Harbour View FC and Molynes United FC played out a 2-2 draw thanks to double strikes from Trayvon Reid and Nicholas Nelson.

Nelson gave Molynes United the lead in the 42^nd minute before Reid made it 1-1 in the 45^th minute.

The 58^th minute saw Nelson get his second to give Molynes United a 2-1 lead before Reid once again equalized in the 90^th minute to ensure the points were shared.

In the second game on the day, goals from Daniel Green in the 14^th and 43^rd minutes, as well as strikes from Allan Ottey in the 17th, Ricardo Morris in the 45th, and Donovan Segree in the 90th helped Mount Pleasant FA secure the biggest win of the round, a 5-1 rout of Humble Lion FC.

Cory Hylton got Humble Lion’s consolation goal in the 83^rd minute.

The second round of matches kicks off on Saturday.

Waterhouse and Cavalier secured spots in the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) finals after semi-final wins over Mount Pleasant and Tivoli Garden at the Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence on Wednesday.

The victories were earned in contrasting fashion, with Waterhouse coming from behind to secure a 1-1 draw with Mount Pleasant, for a 2-1 aggregate win, and Cavalier playing to a 0-0 draw with Tivoli to add to a 1-0 first-leg win.

Needing to overcome an early deficit, Mount Pleasant charged back into the tie early on the back of a fiercely struck free-kick from in-form forward Jourdaine Fletcher who found the back of the net on the 6^th minute.

However, Waterhouse were back in the lead just minutes before the halftime break, with Rafiek Thomas tapping home from five yards away, three minutes into time added on.  The final will be the second consecutive for Waterhouse.

In the other game, Tivoli spurned a golden opportunity to level the tie from the penalty spot after being awarded a spot-kick in the 83^rd minute.  Kemar Flemmings effort was, however, saved by Jeadean White and Devroy Grey fired the rebound, which fell to his feet, high over the crossbar.  The final will take place at the same venue, at 2:30 pm on Saturday.

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.

Mount Pleasant coach Wally Downes has hailed the impact of star forward Jourdaine Fletcher in pushing the team to the semifinal of the Jamaica Premier League.

Having gone behind in the first half it was Fletcher who grabbed a crucial goal for the team, after being introduced from the bench.  The alert forward came into the game at the start of the second half, found the back of the net in the 62^nd minute, after profiting from a defensive mix-up.

The equaliser was a heavy blow to the Stars of the East, who had come into the encounter with a 3-1 first-leg deficit but quickly cut the lead to one goal after scoring early in the second half.

The goal was the fifth of the season for Fletcher, who also found the back of the net in the first leg.

“He wasn’t 100 percent fit to play 90 minutes but he’s an addition to us that you just can’t leave off the pitch,” Downes said of the player’s substitute role.

“So I waited as long as I could and clearly it was the tactical change at the right time.”

Mount Pleasant will next face Waterhouse in the next round.

Tivoli Gardens soared into the last four of the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) with a rousing 4-0 second-leg win over Vere United at the Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence on Wednesday.

After a scoreless first leg between the team, goals from Stephen Barnett, Trayvone Reid, Horatio Morgan, and Jermaine Johnson blew the tie wide open, and perhaps at the end of the tie flattered the West Kingston squad.

Barnett got things rolling in the 18^th minute when he was served up with a well-weighted cross from Delroy Grey, which he was able to deflect neatly into the corner of the goal.

With Vere pushing to get back into the game, it was Tivoli who struck after catching their opponents on the counterattack. Reid broke away from a high Vere backline before calmly slotting the ball around goalkeeper Shavon Wilson to double the lead in the 62^nd minute.

A loosely marked Morgan then slotted the ball into the net at close range after being picked out from a corner in the 83^rd minute.  Veteran Johnson then rubbed salt into the wounds of Vere Technical after coming off the bench to score a penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time.

In the day’s other game, Mount Pleasant also advance to the semi final's following a 1-1 draw with Harbour View to advance 4-2 on aggregate.  The Stars of the East started the game on fire after Oshane Staple found the back of the net in the first five minutes.  Needing a goal to tie the aggregate score, however, Harbour View had a mix-up at the back, which allowed Jourdaine Fletcher to ghost in and tie the game at 1-1.

Mount Pleasant secured the early advantage in the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) quarterfinals following a 3-1 first-leg win over Harbour View at the Captain Horace Burrell Centre For Excellence on Saturday.

After a positive start to the encounter by the Stars of the East, it was Mount Pleasant who gradually gained the ascendency.  The Montego Bay-based franchise took the lead through 17-year-old forward Devonte Campbell in the 30^th minute as he blasted past Harbour View keeper Tafari Chambers at his near post.

With the game in the balance, Kesslan Hall sprinted on to an inch-perfect Daniel Green rainbow pass over the backline and chipped over the head Chambers and into the back of the net in the 55^th minute.  Jourdaine Fletcher’s neat finish in the 75^th minute put Mount Pleasant in complete control but Tyrese Williams gave Harbour View a lifeline after heading home from close range in time added on.  In the day’s other match, Tivoli Gardens and Vere United ended in a 0-0 draw.

Mount Pleasant manager David Galloway has picked the trio of Prince Christie, Ricardo Gaynor, and Kevin Wilson to stun the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) this season.

In an interview with SportsMax.tv, Galloway lauded the talent that has progressed from the academy and believes the young players are going to be brilliant and surprise many in our local sporting arena.

Galloway insists Mount Pleasant is currently enjoying their football in training, and the passion and quality of play he is seeing should put his team in the top two come the end of the season.

The Saint Ann-based will not be threatened or intimidated by any opponent in the league. However, Galloway also said that his players and technical team are not complacent and are taking every opponent seriously.

"Football is a highly competitive sport, doesn't matter who you play against it's the day that counts, and at the end of the day it is the score that counts. You can go out there with your best team and still not come out on top. We try our best to just stay focused, maintain that discipline and we try to prepare players mentally and physically to get them out there and do the job and finish according to our dream plan."

He admitted that the ending prematurely last season was a disappointment.  The team was fourth and he believes their in-form squad would have been serious title contenders.

Since Mount Pleasant has resumed training, players are showing signs of 'top form' once again and Gallaway says he is thankful and elated for the team's consistency. 

Mount Pleasant's first bridge to cross is against five-time champions Tivoli Gardens FC on Sunday, at 8:30 am at the University of the West Indies Bowl, Mona campus.