Blame me for 3-0 defeat, urges Fairclough

Jermaine Lannaman, Gleaner Writer

Arnett Gardens coach, Wayne Fairclough, says he is to be blamed for his team's 3-0 loss to Reno in their Digicel Premier League second-round clash at the Anthony Spaulding Sports Complex on Sunday.

Fairclough, who steered Arnett clear of relegation last season, said tactical manoeuvres on his part caused the team to lose its shape and chemistry and in the end it cost them the game.

"I went for a defensive strategy in the first game against Village by playing more defenders. This gave us stability in the middle of the park," explained Fairclough of their 1-1 draw at Elliston Wakeland Centre the previous weekend.

"However, I changed that approach for this match by going with an orthodox midfield taking into consideration the spectators and the fact that we were at home. But in the end it did not work.

"The changes affected the chemistry of the team and we failed to find our footing," he assessed.

In Sunday's game, Reno, who were coming off a 1-0 home defeat to Portmore United in their first game, took the sting out of the home crowd in the 15th minute via the boots of Omar Dallas.

They then increased their lead in the 28th when Sheldon Bryan netted what secured a morale-boosting 2-0 half-time lead.

Sensing their first win of the season, the men from Westmoreland then withstood the attacking advances of the home team and in the 87th, got what turned out to be a comfortable win through a Craig Foster strike three minutes from time.

Fairclough, however, is still optimistic about his team's prospects, saying they hope to get the chemistry right, starting tomorrow, when they play away to champions Harbour View.

"One has to give us time as it is almost a new squad we are working with," he said.

"We have the unit to do it, it's just that the chemistry is not where it should be at the moment. We have a tough assignment against Harbour View on Wednesday and the hope is that we can get it right," he declared.

Sunday's result propelled Reno into sixth position on three points and pushed Arnett down to eighth with only a point to their credit.