Western trio ready for NPL - High expectations at Reno, Village and MBUFC

Western Bureau:It has been 15 years since Violet Kickers FC won western Jamaica's last National Premier League (NPL) title in 1996, and as the 2011-2012 season approaches, stakeholders in the region are quite hopeful that the prolonged trophy drought will end this season.

Village United, which finished in the top six last year, and former three-time champions Reno FC, who finished seventh after contesting the bottom six, will be joined in the league as western contenders by Montego Bay United Football Club (MBUFC), the entity that has replaced two-time champions Seba United.

With preparations now in high gear, coaches and team bosses aligned to all three western clubs are of the view that the region, which dominated national football between the late 1980s and the mid-1990s, winning an enviable nine NPL titles, is again ready to rule the roost.

At MBUFC, where a new thinking and a new philosophy have been added to the new name, the club's CEO, Orville Powell, says it will not only be about winning championships, as the club's aim is to become economically viable through the development of players suitable for the international market.

Building world-class brand

"We are ready for the NPL, but our vision does not stop with the NPL," said Powell. "Our aim is to build a world-class brand by producing top-class players ... ultimately, we want to do for Montego Bay's economy what clubs like Barcelona have done for Spain."

With a coaching staff comprising national coach, Theodore 'Tappa' Whitmore, and former St James High School coach, Pastor Hugh Solomon, and a talented unit, which has been strengthened by national player Keniel Moodie, goalkeeper Jacomeno Barrett, former Reno FC live wire Troy Reid and national youth player Allan Ottey, MBUFC look the genuine article.

"While we have a talented squad, we will also be looking to add a few overseas players to add a stronger professional flavour," said Powell. "We are in contact with several players from South America and they could be added to the unit in the next transfer window."

For Village United, their first objective will be to have a more consistent season than last year and, with the experienced Kendale Mercury from St Vincent and the Grenadines back as head coach, optimism is quite high that the teams will do better than last season's sixth-place finish.

"We are putting in a lot of work and things are progressing well," said Mercury, who coached the team in the 2007 season. "We have good players and a good system, so once we apply ourselves well we should have a very good season."

With experienced players such as national representative Troy Smith, Lance Laing, national invitee Dino Williams, Cordell Simpson and the experienced André Moore, Village, who have switched home venue to the Trelawny Multi-purpose Stadium, should give a very good account of themselves.

Looking to bounce back

Reno, the most successful of the western trio, with NPL titles in 1990, 1991 and 1995, badly underachieved last year and according to technical director Wendell Downswell, who guided them to all three national titles, this time around they plan to deliver the goods.

"We are putting in the work and things are looking quite good," said Downswell. "Our primary concern at this time is the absence of adequate resources, and we would like to use this opportunity to call on the Westmoreland businesses to help partner with us to help make the season the success we know it can be."

While Reno have lost Troy Reid, Shane Anderson and Craig Foster to an overseas loan deal, Downswell is confident that with gifted players such as Omar Dallas, Evan Taylor, Linval Wilson, André Patterson and Davion Thorpe, the team will be able to hold its own.