For possibly the first time since taking over the reins as head coach of Bermuda, Michael Findlay underwent a nerveless 90 minutes.

In the build-up to the Nations League matches against Dominica, Findlay had been at pains to point out the importance of picking up six points in the back-to-back matches, but even he might not have anticipated the manner in which the first victory would come.

In previous matches the coach had been pleased with performances but bemoaned a lack of finishing touch. That returned with a bang in the shape of Nahki Wells, but the team put on a display of flair, verve and composure that left Findlay ecstatic.

“First and foremost, the reality of our situation is that we need points and let’s start there, we got three points,” Findlay said.

“Now we start looking at the performance and what might happen down the road but one thing is for sure, and that is I’m really pleased for the players.

“We’ve played some very good football over the last little while, we’ve done some good things from a statistical point of view but we haven’t had that execution, we haven’t had the completion, and we were kind of like snakebitten.

“Now it certainly helps when someone like Nahki Wells turns up and helps you but everybody else was involved in that performance. He has to be in the right spots but he still has to get the ball from the other players. It’s nice to see them break out from this one-goal scenario of wins and losses. We also deserved more in the past but that’s football.”

Findlay was happy to ratchet up the pressure on his players ahead of these crucial games and was pleased with how the squad reacted to playing in front of a passionate crowd of more than 1,000 people.

“The players are mature enough to know what this meant tonight, especially coming home,” Findlay said.

“There is always a bit of extra pressure playing at home and there seems to be a little extra pressure playing at home in Bermuda. Sport culture here sets a very high standard and I think I said in an interview the other day that we tend to have a tendency to eat our young a little bit.

“They stood up to that and they stood up to it in an incredible way, in a mature manner and most importantly the application and performance matched the result.”

For ardent Bermuda fans, the mix of youth and experience on the field was a joy to watch, with a veteran spine of Dale Eve, Danté Leverock, Roger Lee, Reggie Lambe and, of course, Wells supplementing young legs, and Findlay is pleased at the depth of talent in his squad.

“What we’re trying to do is grow this squad deeper and in the second half you saw two domestic players come on to the pitch, a domestic player score and a first-time international player come on to the pitch.

“This is really important because we need to be deeper and better. The size of member association that we are, we’re always going to be in a challenge when it relates to club commitments, conflicts, travels, injuries and all the things that go along with international football.”

While Nahki Wells will rightly get the plaudits for his classy display, in tandem Reggie Lambe again showed his quality and Findlay is delighted to have the pair at his disposal.

“The most important thing about them being here is that they deserve to be here,” Findlay said.

“They are not being picked because they are Reggie Lambe or Nahki Wells, they’re picked because they are performing and they are doing well.

“Reggie was excellent in Antigua and that’s why he remained in the team. Nahki is playing at the highest level that we have and he hasn’t come here for a jaunt and a holiday to Bermuda.

“He’s come and done the business. That’s the sign of a true professional and that’s what we want from everybody, professionals, high standards, living that high-performance lifestyle and hopefully getting games like this more and more.”

Photo gallery