Audley Boyd, Assistant Editor - Sport

Boys' Town players Michael Campbell (left), Oneil McDonald (second left), Fabian Watkins (No.19), Xavian Virgo (No.15), Garfield Gillespie (top facing camera) and George Vernal (centre, partly hidden), mob goalscorer Denzil Watson (unseen) after he netted the opening goal in their 3-0 rout of Waterhouse, in the Digicel Premier League match at Collie Smith Drive, yesterday. - Junior Dowie/Staff Photographer

IT'S just not the type of score you expect in a clash among big clubs.

A Boys' Town spectator, who kept taunting the visitors from behind the bench at Collie Smith Drive, may have summed up the Waterhouse debacle perfectly after his team's captain, Michael Campbell, had drilled their third and final goal past Richard McCallum a minute from time.

"A slaughterhouse over ya today," he said.

The writing was on the wall long before then, as Waterhouse looked ripe for the killing the very minute they conceded the second goal at the 53rd minute.

There was much about the goal to knock the life out of any team, an ankle-low free kick taken by George Vernal that went right through the wall and past a motionless McCallum, beating him at the near post.

Defending

He spread his arms questioningly, and in the the circumstances quite rhetorically. But the only answer that came within that instance - 15 seconds after the restart - mirrored the ill-timed nature of their defending all day, and season, as Rohan Amos though late with his feet to tackle Denzil Watson who had netted the only first-half goal at the 31st minute, unleashed a right hook that would have floored any opponent and sent the striker to the turf.

The moment of madness prompted referee Howard Stennett's easiest call of the day: a straight red card.

Hometown spectators were angered, and within seconds Waterhouse central defender Oneil Thomas, like Watson, was spreadeagled on the turf without much motion. Fears he had been hit with a missile were put to rest after an allegation that a woman had thrown a stone at the Waterhouse defender.

He never needed a count, even though there was a stoppage for four minutes, but it only provided ample resting time for the Red Brigade to catch their breath for a relaunch of their relentless pursuit.

Tight leash

As indicated by the score, they were already succeeding long before that with efficient play at both ends of the pitch, as defenders Xavian Virgo and Carlos Wright kept a tight leash on Waterhouse's deadly front-line duo, Kevin Lamey and Jermaine Anderson, which significantly limited their offensive threat, even though midfielders Kenardo Forbes and Vincent Earle were steady.

Lamey got the best chance 2-0 down in the second half but after taking a superb pass from Irvino English in his stride, he hit way over the goal.

Much of that finishing went on at the opposite end of the field as Boys' Town cut through the visiting team's porous defensive system time and again to create open chances.

"Once we got the two goals, we took our feet off the pedal," Boys' Town coach Andrew Price noted, while attesting to their dominance. "It was just a matter of how many goals we'd have won by once they went down to 10 men."

As it enhanced their end-of-round final chances, the Trench Town moved to 18 points and stayed second, basically eliminating Waterhouse's hopes.

The Drewsland team remained on 12 points as they dropped to sixth.

"It's totally disappointing," remarked Wayne Fairclough, Waterhouse's coach. "I didn't think we came here to play football today.

"Whilst attacking, we left the defensive aspect of our game open. All season we've had defensive problems and we may have to try new players," he added of a horrible 15-goal concession in nine matches, that has outdone the 14 they have scored. The players on the fringe need to come forward."

Not a surprising solution, based on the unexpected hammering they took in a clash among big teams.