Stewart thrilled with Harbour View win - Molynes coach Simms under pressure after another defeat

Damion ‘Stew Peas’ Stewart, head coach of Harbour View, has expressed his delight after securing his first victory in the Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL), following their 1-0 victory over the spiralling Molynes United at the Constant Spring Sports Complex yesterday.

The result, while welcomed by Stewart and Harbour View, heaps more pressure on under-fire Molynes head coach Lijyasu Simms, who is, according to our sources, close to being sacked.

Defender Romario Thompson netted the all-important goal for Harbour View in the 74th minute. The victory was Stewart’s first win in three matches since he took charge of the club earlier this month with his previous two matches in charge both ending in defeats for the ‘Stars of the East’.

“I am very excited about this victory because it is good to get three points on the board,” said Stewart, a former national defender. “It’s a work in progress, and we will continue working hard for the remainder of the season.”

“I am still searching for my starting 11 because if you noticed, I am still changing around the players because I need to find the best 11, and I haven’t sorted that out as yet,” Stewart added.

The first half was evenly contested as both teams did little to create any meaningful scoring chances and cancelled out each other at both ends of the field.

The game came to life in the second half when Molynes United’s Rayan Brown saw his powerful right-footed effort struck the crossbar from point-blank range in the 55th minute.

A few minutes later, Brown’s teammate, Tajahe Dixon, thought he had given Molynes the lead, but his powerful header from 10 yards out sailed over the bar.

Made to pay

Molynes were made to pay for their missed opportunities when Thompson arrived at the centre of the 18-yard box to head home past custodian Leon Taylor to relegate Molynes to their sixth defeat in their last eight matches.

Stewart, who made 54 appearances for the Reggae Boyz, noted that he was pleased with his team’s display of character.

“What I like about this performance is that they showed me heart , and they showed me that they didn’t want to lose the game. They fought to the end and I am happy for that,” Stewart said.

Molynes assistant coach Marlon Williams admitted that he is worried about his team’s form, which has taken a sharp turn after they won their first six games in the league after achieving promotion ahead of the season.

“It has reached a stage where we are really concerned because we played well in this game and we still lost it,” said Williams. “I have to be wondering what is going on in the camp because we can’t continue like this going forward.”

There are growing rumours that head coach Lijyasu Simms will be shown the exit in the coming days and that the Molynes United top brass has already identified his replacement.

-R.B.

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