Boys' Town clip Sporting

Ainsley Walters, Gleaner Writer

ANTHONY BENNETT glanced in a late header for Boys' Town yesterday evening to hand his team a 1-0 win over Sporting Central Academy and keep the homesters third in the Digicel Premier League standings on 20 points, behind leaders Waterhouse and second-place Tivoli Gardens.

Bennett scored an 82nd-minute near-post header off Xavian Virgo's cross from the right of the penalty box.

Waterhouse jumped to 25 points with a 2-1 away win at Humble Lion, snapping the Clarendon team's four-match unbeaten streak under coach Lenny Hyde.

Tivoli, who started the afternoon on 21 points, drew 1-1 with Portmore United in a later match.

Sporting Central's coach, Donovan Duckie, lamented his team's form in front goal saying yesterday's result told the story of their season, which has them eighth in the 12-team table on 13 points.

"All the games we've lost one-love, it's the same thing," he said. "We create nine or 10 chances, we don't score, the opponent creates one and we lose. It's the same story ... dismal finishing," he added.

Sporting really should have had Boys' Town limping back to the changing room after the first half, but goalie Kirk Porter, who was later sent off in stoppage time, denied the hard-kicking Oneke Ford, who rifled one from 25 yards in the sixth minute.

However, Ford had no excuse two minutes later, when he scooped a chance over the crossbar from eight yards.

High crosses

Boys' Town seemed at sea in the first 15 minutes but got their chance to go ahead in the 24th when Sporting's goalie, Andre Blake - always suspect to high crosses - let go of one in his box.

Striker Michael Campbell aimed a header which seemed destined for the back of the net, beating Blake but not central defender Akeem Annakie covering for his keeper.

Boys' Town came out the better team in the second half and just missed grabbing the lead in the 47th after Blake made another error.

Porter was again the hero for Boys' Town in the 49th, racing out of goal to smother François Swaby's shot in the 49th. Sporting were left cursing their luck in the 75th after Levaughn Williams' header beat Porter, but not the crossbar.

Mazy run

Virgo, who started overlapping down the right late in the match, won it for Boys' Town in a mazy run, before crossing to the near post where Bennett rushed in to head past a bemused Blake.

Boys' Town coach, Andrew Price, hailed Virgo as "the best right back in the country" after his assist.

"We didn't have a particularly good first half but in the second half we started putting the ball on the ground and moved it around," Price admitted.

"We achieved one of our goals for the first round and that was to end with 20 points," he pointed out.