Hamilton Parish 1

Dandy Town 5

Hamilton Parish, winless and rooted to the bottom of the Premier Division, were routed by Dandy Town at Wellington Oval yesterday.

Parish dropped into last place on Friday night when Devonshire Cougars picked up their first win, and they never looked like they had the ability to upset an unbeaten Town side who adapted better to the wet conditions.

Parish, who finished fourth last season, have been finding the going tough this season, picking up just a single point so far, after drawing with PHC in their last home match.

However, Town represented a far tougher opponent and they showed from the outset why they are top of the league.

It took just six minutes for Town to take the lead, when Drewonde Bascome’s low hard cross into the box was deflected by Brandon Edwards, before dropping over Nigel Burgess, the goalkeeper, and into the goal.

Parish went close to equalising immediately afterwards when Donovan Thompson caught Ajai Daniels, the Town goalkeeper, out of position and lobbed the ball over him, only to watch in agony as the ball hit the crossbar allowing Town to clear the danger.

At the other end Tomiko Goater’s effort hit the base of the post as the slick conditions made things difficult.

Town doubled their lead in the 25th minute when a cross from the left by Jahnazae Swan was firmly headed past Burgess by Dominique Lambert, last weekend’s hat-trick hero against Boulevard.

And when Swan scored the third himself just 40 seconds into the second half, it was over as a contest for Parish.

Swan was allowed to run with the ball 25 yards from goal before he hit a low, curling shot that sneaked into the far post, catching Burgess flat-footed as it skid along the surface.

Parish then pulled a goal back when Thompson was allowed space to control the ball from a free kick into the box and volley past Daniels.

That, though, was the closest Parish came to threatening an upset as the visiting team scored twice more in the space of fourteen minutes. A good strong run into the box on the right by Angelo Simmons, the Town captain, saw his low cross deflected into his own goal by Keoki Cann in the 63rd minute.

The final goal, Town’s fourteenth in their last four games, came in the 77th minute when Goater scored after more slack defending. By that time Parish already looked like a beaten team and their heads dropped even further as the fifth goal went in.

It was Goater’s seventh goal of the season, and Town’s 27th in seven league matches.

“I was happy with the score but more pleased with our performance, and the manner in which we were able to get the three points,” Jomar Wilkinson, the Dandy Town coach, said. “We worked collectively and took very good care of the ball.

“Goater works very hard in training so he is reaping his rewards. We managed the conditions very well today.”