Reynolds looking to strengthen MBU squad

Vassell Reynolds, newly appointed head coach of Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL) outfit Montego Bay United (MBU), said despite the loss of a few of the club stalwarts, he is impressed with the current players and is looking to tick all the boxes in the summer transfer window.

MBU lost out on the chance to hold on to national defender Ladale Richie and central midfielder Ronaldo Rodney last week. Both are now aligned to newly promoted outfit Mount Pleasant Academy.

"From my information, I don't think we would have lost any other player apart from those two of the last set-up. This is going to be our third week in terms of our assessment, we are looking closely as to who we have and who we want to bring in ... . Hopefully, we can identify the areas we need to strengthen and do a good job where that is concerned," said Reynolds.

Reynolds is no stranger to the schoolboy football arena as he won two trophies in the Corporate Area (Walker Cup in 2015 and Flow Super Cup in 2016) with Wolmer's Boys' School and the daCosta Cup with Rusea's High School last year.

My philosophy

When asked if he will be looking to bring some of the youngsters he has seen over the past three years, especially those in the daCosta Cup last season, to the fore, Reynolds told the WESTERN STAR, "youth is a big part of my philosophy.

"We are trying, though, to create a balance of experience with youth. So far we would have assessed a number of under-21 players that we are pretty impressed about and would want to pin down," said Reynolds

With the loss of the aforementioned players and the retirement of last season's club captain and stalwart central midfielder Dwayne Ambusley, who is now the assistant coach, Reynolds outlined that there is a need to bring in some experience.

"Certainly, when it comes to our defence, it is somewhere that I am concerned about, especially with the fact that we would have lost a couple of players there and in the midfield. I don't want to call names now, but, of course, we are looking to get in some experience to sort of strengthen the team overall," said Reynolds.