By Nodley Wright, Staff ReporterARNETT Gardens' dismal run in the second round of the Wray and Nephew National Premier League continued yesterday at the Harbour View Mini Stadium where they had to claw their way back to a 1-1 draw with bottom of the table Bull Bay.
After beating Harbour View in the end of round final, the defending champion Arnett Gardens have found wins difficult to come by. They beat Rivoli 3-1 in their opening round following which they have had four consecutive draws.
A disappointed coach Jerome Waite is aware that something is wrong with his players but is yet to put a finger on it.
"They did not play as well as I would have liked them to," said Waite after the game before adding, "We still have to look into the team and see how we are going to find the best possible chemistry at this time."
He also said that there are a number of injured players which could be having a negative effect on his team.
"The breakdown definitely has to do with the midfield. The midfield is still not delivering. A team without a midfield is not a team," Waite said.
While Waite was left ruing his team's performance for Rivoli's player/coach Barrington Gaynor it was something to build on.
"Most definitely (it is a satisfying result) for us because it has been quite a while since we got a point," said Gaynor whose team were only earning their second point of the round.
The 1-1 draw is a big turnaround from their last game against Constant Spring in which they were thumped 4-0. Then Gaynor said his team was a bit unlucky.
"I thought we were a bit unlucky (against Constant Spring). They say luck favours the brave and we were brave today so luck carried us through and we got a point.
For Gaynor this one point against Arnett Gardens carries a lot of weight and his team are taking a lot of heart from it. "This is the big bad Arnett Gardens and we came out with a point.
"The last time we met they beat us 3-0 easily. We got a point here today and they were fortunate to get a point," Gaynor concluded.
In yesterday's game the defending champions looked a shadow of themselves. They looked disorganised and in need of a rest. Even the usually energetic Gerald Neil looked as if he would have welcomed a break.
Their less fancied opposition looked a more cultured team. They passed the ball around well and dictated the play with Milton Griffiths, Dellon Wilson, Mahlon Sullivan and Christopher Dodd looking good. Demetrio Billet also showed glimpses of quality.
Richard Brown had a low shot which took the upright in the 18th minute with Julian McLeish beaten. Seven minutes later a solid right-footer from Griffiths was well blocked by McLeish.
Towards the end of the first half Arnett came back into the game and could have gone into the half time break with the lead. In one of the rare moments when he freed himself down the right flank, Craig Gordon served in a good cross which was played back in the path of Walter Boyd by Jonathan Williams.
Boyd blasted what looked a certain goal high from about six yards.
It did not appear to be his day as two minutes into the second half he had another close range effort strike the upright.
Bull Bay took the lead in the 64th minute when a questionable foul was awarded. Dodd's freekick was mishandled by McLeish and the onrushing Raphael Bellinfante turned it home.
Kevin Wilson, who had an earlier miss, rescued his team when he headed home a Walter Boyd cross in the 73rd minute.
