Age just a number for Johnson

Tivoli Gardens midfielder Jermaine 'Teddy' Johnson shouldn't be on a starting eleven with any professional team. He admits so himself. But the 39-year-old stalwart is defying father time, playing his part in rescuing the Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL) season for his club, which was at one point on life support.

From spending majority of the season in the drop zone, Tivoli have been on an upward trajectory and got their first win of the new year on Sunday, defeating Harbour View 3-0 at the Edward Seaga Complex. Head coach Philip Williams described the performance as "their most complete game of the season," and Johnson, who opened the scoring in the 33rd minute, is enjoying the opportunity playing with the new crop of players.

"At my age, I shouldn't even be starting with no team at all, but I try to just keep up my fitness, I try to keep my level up," Johnson told STAR Sports. "I try to take away from the younger players and see what I can get from them, and it has helped me a lot to play with these players."

Johnson made his seventh straight start this season on Sunday and has contributed with two goals as Tivoli now sit in eighth place with 26 points, four points from the play-off places and 10 points clear from the drop zone. The club is in his blood as he made his professional debut there in 1999 and returned in 2015 after spending time with clubs in England. Once on the brink of retirement, he came back for another season, in part to honour the memory of late club president and former Prime Minister Edward Seaga, who passed away last summer, and also for the opportunity to share the field with the club's new crop of talent.

Younger players

"It was out of respect for Mr Seaga," he said. "That was just simple for me. But apart from that, it was the younger players. I wanted to play with them and pass on my knowledge. I was excited to play with some of these players, so it was easy for me to come back."

The example he has set for the young players has been noticed by Williams, who hailed his performance and the impact that he has had on the team, especially in stewarding the club's youth.

"Teddy" knows his responsibilities," Williams said. "He is the senior most player we have on the team. The youngsters feed off his energy, feed off his experience. And definitely he is one of the most valuable players we have out there," he said after the game.

Tivoli's steady rise out of the RSPL basement is a relief to Johnson and he still feels that making the play-off is not out of reach.

"In any league, you always want to go to the top," Johnson said. "We need to just keep focus and keep positive and keep our foot down on the ground and everything will come after that."

Tivoli travel to the Effortville Community Centre to face Humble Lion on Sunday.