BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – ST. PETERS gambled with a changed starting lineup last night (May 26) in the first game of the Digicel Premier League finals against TDC Newtown United and paid dearly with a 3-0 loss.
While Newtown was not entirely organized in the early minutes of the match, it did not take them long to settle in and play the controlling style of football that has been their hallmark throughout the playoff series.
Keithroy Saddler scored the first goal of the game for Newtown in minute 35. St. Peters held their ground for the remainder of the first half, but Newtown came out hard after the break and Kennedy Isles and Alexis Saddler went on to extend their side’s lead in minutes 48 and 54, respectively.
SKNVibes spoke to Newtown Manager Derrick Fyfield, who said that his side is obviously very pleased with the dominating performance but has no intention of becoming complacent.
“The vibe after the game was one of satisfaction to the point that we went out with a game plan and executed it, not perfectly but still successfully. We are planning to do the same thing on Saturday night and we expect the same result.
“We are treating every game as the first game. We are going to treat it as a regular season game against St. Peters and we don't plan to begin the celebrations until the final whistle blows,” he stated.
Fyfield said that Newtown has made an effort throughout the season to improve every aspect of their game and those efforts are bearing major fruits for the Premier League finals.
“Basically all year round we concentrated on our midfield and our defence, as well as our striking. Newtown has played the ball mostly on the wing throughout the season and that is really our strong point, bringing it from the outside in.”
Meanwhile, St. Peters Manager Julian Morton said the first obstacle his team needs to overcome is the psychological impact of such a crushing defeat.
“We have to get the players back up mentally thinking and knowing they can do this thing. That is what we really plan to do tonight and we'll move forward from there. Of course we need to sit down as management and staff and work out all the details. We have seen our mistakes and we plan to capitalize on that.”
Morton said that St. Peters may have done too much “experimenting” with their starting 11 for the first game and would have to focus on their strengths in the do-or-die second game Saturday (May 29) at Warner Park.
“The players didn't stick to the game plan. We prepared them very well mentally. They were there, but I think they crumbled and that was our downfall,” he added. “We have to do better Saturday.”
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