Hamilton Parish 1

PHC Zebras 0

By Tim Smith

Hamilton Parish continued their excellent form by grinding out a 1-0 victory over PHC Zebras thanks to a smart finish from Ryan Tyrrell.

Tyrrell volleyed into the roof of the net after PHC failed to deal with a second-half corner to bring Parish their third successive victory and cement their position of second place in the table.

Zebras may feel aggrieved at the result having spent much of the game on the front foot — but Keishon Smith, the Parish coach, was able to reflect on another determined and defensively-disciplined performance from his high-flying side, who are unbeaten in the Premier League at Wellington Oval in 2014.

“This is Sparta,” Smith said. “We believe that in order to be successful you have to defend your home ground, and that’s what we have been doing here at Wellington Oval. We’ve made it very difficult for teams to come here and get a result.

“Today, Zebras maybe deserved something from the game, but it was a great team effort from us, and it was an excellent finish from Ryan Tyrrell to get us the win.”

Parish defeated Robin Hood 2-0 and Somerset Trojans 1-0 in their previous two performances.

“There’s no secret behind these shutouts,” Smith said. “We train hard throughout the week, and the players all follow my instructions.

“I’m pushing for us to be as disciplined as we can, as that gives us a chance of success.”

Ijahmon Mallory and Anthony Smith, an uncompromising centre back partnership, provided the foundation for yesterday’s triumph, while the tireless running of Calin Maybury and Chris Caisey in midfield meant PHC seldom had chance to settle.

Zebras were at their most dangerous when they got the ball to wide forwards Kadeem Abraham and Shakir Smith, but both lacked the decisive touch when it mattered.

Smith, in particular, had a frustrating day as he failed to seriously test Nigel Burgess, the imposing Parish keeper, despite using his neat footwork to create a number of promising openings.

Parish remained a threat on the break, and Shayne Hollis, last week’s goalscoring hero, sidefooted wide with a volley after Daniel Adams, the PHC goalkeeper, rushed from his goal to deal with a misplaced backpass from Marquel Waldron.

PHC’s closest attempt at an equaliser came from Lonnie Bascome, the lively substitute, whose downward header from a corner was blocked on the line by Tyrrell.

Cecoy Robinson, who was always involved for the visiting side, also went close after a lay off from Na’eem Griffith, the substitute. But as Parish closed the match out with their well-drilled defensive lines, Zebras were increasingly reduced to long-range pot shots that carried more hope than expectation.