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Coach Bernard offers no excuse for loss
June 06, 2023
Harbour View failed to put up the expected fight from champions and surrendered their Jamaica Premier League (JPL) title at the semi-finals stage after going out 3-0 on aggregate to Cavalier, following a 2-0 defeat in the second leg at Sabina Park on Sunday.
Going into the match a goal down, Cavalier managed the game perfectly, giving the champions little in attack while constantly creating openings in their defence by hitting them on the break.
Coach Ludlow Bernard thought Harbour View lacked the patience they needed in attack and failed to handle the threat of Cavalier's counter-attacks.
"We all knew what was to be expected, and that is why we really wanted the first goal. We could have been a little more disciplined when we got behind them. They tried a little bit too hard and not executing.
"We shuffled the deck and tried many permutations, but, of course, we knew the Cavalier defence was always going to be very stubborn and difficult to break down.
"Then we had set up for the counter in the event they wanted to counter against us, but I don't think we defended that well," he said.
He, however, believed that overall, Cavalier were better on the day.
"The first goal, we certainly could have done a little better, but the manner and pattern they played probably suited them to how we played. So I am not going to offer any excuses. The team that was probably a bit braver ended up with the win," Bernard commented.
Nevertheless, he was proud of how his players fought to the end, despite most things not going their way on the night, especially after Cavalier scored in the 11th minute.
"The early goal was always going to make it difficult for us, but the players were gracious in defeat. They played right to the end, which was very important. Even the support from the players on the bench was very good.
"The attitude of the players was good throughout, and overall I thought it was a very good season," he commented.
Bernard, however, added that they would have to put the defeat behind them and be ready for the third-place play-off, in which the winner will get a spot in the qualifiers of the Concacaf Caribbean Cup.
"This is a season that we have to put behind us because we have other assignments coming up, which we look forward to and prepare ourselves for," he said.
