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THE HARBOUR VIEW
FOOTBALL CLUB
celebrates it's
30th Anniversary (March 4th,1974)
all season long 2003- 2004.
Since the days when
the eager citizens of Harbour View grouped together
at the Harbour View Primary School halls to meet
and greet each other all around The love of football
mostly then at the Minor League Under 16 years
level before taking the conscious decision to enter
the Major League in September 1974 after electing
officers in the newly formed Harbour View Football Club
previously named after the community only – Harbour View.
HARBOUR VIEW ENDS SEASON AT HOME WITH 2-1 WIN OVER RIVOLI
UNITED.
Two
goals by defender Christopher “Jamel” Harvey on both sides of
the half made for a winning end of season at the compound.
After many goal-scoring opportunities were wasted by forwards
Luton Shelton and Greg Gardner a strike from 20 yards out on
the stroke of halftime by Christopher Harvey put the hosts
into the lead at the break.
Then Rivoli responded with a
one-time shot from
Derrick
Planter in the 73rd minute to level the scores as Rivoli sort
a all important victory to stay alive in the race for fourth
place and a berth into the semi-finals for the first time.
Then Harvey header at the far
post in minute 80 meant the game confirms Harbour View as the
second placed team and stops the chances of Rivoli advancing
as the fourth placed team.
The final games are scheduled
for next Sunday April 25th with HARBOUR VIEW away to 5th
placed WATERHOUSE on 53 points.
EASTER
MONDAY FOOTBALL FESTIVAL IN MANDEVILLE
The annual festival put on by
Los Perfectos Football Club organized by former JFF President
and CONCACAF Executive Mr Tony James was a success. The
Harbour View family happily made the trek across the middle of
the island to the newly upgraded Brooks Park Complex.
Six-a-side football competitions, netball, fun day activities
for the family, discotheque music along with the throng of
residents from surrounding area made the day unforgettable.
The 4pm Master’s League game
saw Harbour View winning by 3-0 over Los Perfectos Masters
with two goals by Micheal “Blackamike” McIntosh and the third
by Neville ‘Val’ Richards.
The feature game between
Harbour View Under 21 team versus Los Perfectos Super League
campaigner ended with a 1-0 victory to Los P.
Food, Fun and Fraternity was
the essence of the get-together of the groups as
wives,girlfriends and children were the focus of the day as
everyone enjoyed the social outing which as been built up
between both clubs over 25 years.
HARBOUR
VIEW ADVANCES TO SECOND POSITION WITH A SOLID 3-1 DEFEAT OVER
ARNET GARDENS!
The compound rocked with the
vibrations of solid attacking football as “The Stars of the
East” whipped the out-of-sorts Arnett Gardens at the Compound
with three second half goals to come from behind and snatch
victory.
Consolidating their second
place in the points table on 56 points and to end the distant
last gasps effort of Arnett Gardens (38 points) to sneak into
the semi-finals, As leaders Tivoli Gardens (64 points) edged
champions Portmore United (53 points) by 2-1 at the Railway
Oval to make the losers slip to third position. Rivoli United
by defeating Star Cosmos by 2-0 and Village United defeating
Trelawny neighbours, Invaders by 1-0 means both victors
advanced to 50 points over sixth placed Waterhouse who drew
1-1 away to Reno to stay at 48 points.
In a game that started with the
Harbour View Cheerleaders chanting “Come-on-the View!”.
The gold and blue boys marched
confidently forward as Nicholas McCreath blast was well
blocked by Julian McKliesh, then Jomo Gordon shot was parried
to Sean Fraser who rushed and kicked high at an open goal. It
was the only blemish in an otherwise sound performance from
the former junior Under 17 and Under 20 World Cup campaigner.
The good old adage of missing
goalscoring opportunities coming back to haunt you was evident
when Leon Strickland wormed his way down the center of the
defensive wall to beat goalkeeper Leeroy Grey in minute 26 and
take the lead. Good exchanges highlighted the remainder of the
stanza. Arnett lead by 1-0 at the break.
Striker Nicholas McCreath
lobbed the advancing keeper McKliesh to equalise after 61
minutes, then a foul on Greg Gardner at the top of the area
meant a free-kick in the absence of the injured midfielders
Jermaine Hue and Daniel Shaw. Christopher Harvey ran the
length of the field in celebration as he struck a lethal
right-footer through the wall and stopped only by the capable
net that bulged extra-ordinarily from the force of the 20 yard
shot. The 83rd minute shock was still vibrating as Greg
Gardner tapped back to Donald ”Foulie” Stewart on top of the
area to shunt to McCreath breaking on the right of goal his
calm slot to free man substitute Luton Shelton to tap home
from six yards in time added on, to complete the route by 3-1.
In the Under 21 contest earlier
in the day Arnett Gardens edged Harbour View by 1-0 courtesy
of a Marcellino Blackburn 23rd minute strike to keep
themselves in second position as Harbour View remained third
behind leaders Portmore United.
TRIPLE DEFENDING KNOCKOUT
CHAMPIONS OUSTED 1-0 TO WATERHOUSE IN BRUISING AFFAIR.
Three injuries in the first 30
minutes, plus a opportunist goal from Nigerian centre forward
Uchucheckwu Chinyere were more than enough to deny the
determined Jamaica National Building Society Federation Cup
Champions a fourth consecutive appearance in the finals
yesterday.
It all went wrong when firstly
Waterhouse forward Shane Edwards rammed into goalkeeper Leon
Gordon side early on and after two attempts to continue he
departed after the goal was scored, clearly immobilised. Next
ace midfielder Daniel Shaw wilted in agony after stretching
for a ball his groin injury was aggrevated, so too newly
called up national midfielder Jermaine Hue when taking a
free-kick.
All three substitutions were
hurriedly made and the team tried in vain to equalise before
the break while settling down, that also did not work. The
second half saw the true champions mettle come to the fore as
every inch of the ground was exploited to get on even terms.
Jomo Gordon headed wide, so too captain Damion Stewart and
Craig Stewart’s lounge also went the wrong side of the post.
Nicholas McCreath’s clear shot from 16 yards never
materialised as he slipped upon contact and Sean Fraser’s best
effort went wide of the upright with goalkeeper Loxely Reid
beaten.
The fourth time repeat winner
was not to be as the boys fought galantly but with no reward.
Congratulations to Waterhouse
and Village United who made it to their first national final
by defeating lower league contestants Santos F.C. who showed a
lot of class by 1-0.
Best of luck to both finalists
as a new champion will be crowned for the first time since
1999.
HARBOUR VIEW EDGES PAST RENO
BY 1-0.
A Jermaine Hue direct corner
kick in minute 80 was just enough to give “The Stars of the
East” a well needed three points from a hard earned victory at Frome, Westmoreland.
On a bumpy field, high winds
and poor officiating, the Harbour View players battled all
afternoon to eek out a victory after coming under harsh
tackles, kicks and fouls that went unnoticed by the referee.
However in the second half after missed chances by McCreath,
Gordon and Hue the team finally
relaxed into a game which concentrated on footbal and not the
many distractions about. Firstly McCreath beat goalkeeper
Aaron Lawrence who advanced but his shot rolled agonisingly
wide of the post. Then Jomo Gordon missed the close in rebound
and his shot cleared from the line.
But the game ended in favour of
the more enterprising team when a right-sided corner was
seemingly blown in past three defenders and the goalkeeper at
the near post , to the dismay of the Reno fans as Jermaine
Hue’s magic seemed to have worked.
Harbour View now remains joint
second with Portmore United on 53 points behind leaders Tivoli
on 61.
HARBOUR VIEW TRIUMPH OVER TIVOLI BY 3-1 TO MARCH INTO
FEDERATION CUP SEMIFINALS AGAINST SANTOS.
Nicholas
McCreath’s double strike elevates defending Champions, And
brings Tivoli’s 18 game winning streak to a halt.
Under an overcast sky the gold
and blue uniform of the “Stars of the East” shone brightly as
a stunning first half performance totally destroyed the
impressive recent track record of League leaders Tivoli
Gardens yesterday afternoon at the Compound to rapturous
applause from the home crowd accentuated by the attractive
cheerleaders from the grandstand.
It started briskly from the
third minute when Jermaine Hue’s pass found Jomo Gordon in a
forward position, he raced by his marker on the left before
squaring to the instep of number thirteen, Nicholas “Helmet”
McCreath who drove home to the far corner of the goal in
minute thirteen.
As Tivoli fought back minute 34
would prove devastating for them as Craig Stewart drove
ferociously against the base of the upright from 16 yards out
leaving everyone in a daze, until Daniel Shaw reacted quickest
to slam the rebound home.
Three minutes later Jomo Gordon
was at it again, this time releasing McCreath from the
half-line to out-sprint the defence before beating the
goalkeeper Edsel Scott to his right.
3-0 at the break was too much
to ask and even though Tivoli replied with a Lenworth Hyde Jr
goal after 71 minutes, it was too little too late as the
winning streak was snapped on the 30th anniversary
celebrations platform.
Harbour View advances to the
semifinals of the islandwide knockout competition at Arnett
Gardens complex next Sunday March 28th at 6:00 pm against
Waterhouse. This follows semifinal one with Village United
versus Santos F.C. at 4:00pm.
A
tribute to a striker, FABIAN TAYLOR.
By Nicholas McCreath
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Nicholas
McCreath |
When magnificent God-given
talent is merged with strong discipline and an attitude of
determination, the end result is a top class athlete in the
form of Fabian Taylor. In the short time that Fabian has
graced the NPL with his abilities, he has managed to create a
persona as the most feared striker in the league. His amazing
scoring touch is yet to be consistently deterred by any team,
as he walks away from this his final season as the leading
scorer and the most accomplished player for the season thus
far. If asked what makes Taylor different from any other
forward in the country, my unconscious response would be that
he combines prolific scoring with a touch of finesse. He is a
cross between an Alan Shearer and a David Bergkamp, making the
game look easier than it really is. Watching him play, one may
be fooled into thinking that being in the right place at the
right time and finishing off a play in silky-smooth fashion is
merely a walk in the park. This is the essence of a great
striker and Fabian has fully embodied this character sketch.
It is easy to look at people's
successes and to think that it was an easy road to the heights
that they have attained. However, the sweat of endurance, the
sorrow of disappointment and, most importantly, the strength
to go on when even your best efforts don't seem to do the
trick, this is what has elevated Fabian to be a cut above the
rest. He is currently the only local forward who has remained
in the National team regardless of the number of professionals
that make their entrance into the squad. Undaunted by playing
only insignificant minutes in big games on occasion, Fabian
played these minutes as if they were all that mattered an
performed at the same level as anyone else out there. Not
withstanding he has been a success on the international scene,
as well as the local scene and it is very obvious that he has
earned the respect and trust of Technical Director Carl Brown
as well as the critical Jamaican fans nationwide.
Fabian
has distinguished himself in big moments as a Michael Jordan
type clutch player, scoring up to 3 goals at a time in the
most important of games. To turn back the hands of time, it
was a Fabian Taylor double strike that made the difference in
the only game in which HVFC defeated arch rivals Arnett
Gardens 3-1 to advance to the Federation cup Final and become
the eventual winners of the cup last season. And if that
seemed like merely a stroke of luck, this year, he repeated
the feat in more splendid fashion by single-handedly
masterminding the destruction of Arnett for a 3-2
come-from-behind win for HVFC. He scored all three goals.
What is most amazing about
Fabian is not his knack for goal-scoring nor his excellent
touch on the ball, but his passion for the game and his
competitive attitude. Put simply, he just hates losing. Fabian
has a comedic personality and gets along well with most
people. He is seemingly always joking around, taking nothing
too seriously. However, the moment he steps onto the field of
play it is like he becomes a different person. His focus is
unbreakable and the comedian becomes the charismatic leader,
shouting instructions and leading by example.
Many people are of the opinion
that football contracts are a one in a million for the
athletes who play. However, I still insist that for some
people, like Ricardo Gardener, Ricardo Fuller, Andy Williams,
Damani Ralph and Fabian Taylor, the odds are not that
far-fetched. In fact, the truth is that, when God chooses to
bless you with much, some accomplishments are mere only a
matter of time, i.e. an eventuality. Fabian has proven to
everyone that he knows what it takes to make it to the next
level and that he is poised to truly realize his amazing
potential. I only hope that myself, along with my teammates
and all others who aspire to reach certain goals in life will
be privileged to witness the level of greatness that I
strongly believe he can reach, and be inspired by it.
Farewell Fabian, I have no
doubt that you will do even better than you have previously
done and continue to make Jamaica and the New York/New Jersey
Metro Stars, proud. Your new colours may be red and black, but
we at Harbour View will always see you in that Gold and Blue
number 19 jersey, scoring goal after goal, as your success
keeps our dreams alive.
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