Wolves 3 PHC 1<$f$>Three spectacular efforts and a distinguished goalkeeping display by Corby Durrant sent Wolves into the New Year’s Day leg of the Dudley Eve Trophy final in commanding position.

John Barry Nusum fashioned two goals out of nothing in the first-half, his second brace against PHC in as many games, with Jamal Simmons putting Wolves three up minutes after the restart. But there was a downside for Wolves as well, as Khari Sharrieff got himself sent off inexcusably and will miss what is expected to be their crowning moment at Wellington Oval.

The Zebras gave themselves hope for the second leg when substitute Duval Wilson was on hand to score from close range after a shot from the luckless Dennis Russell came back off the crossbar.

It could have been far worse for Mark Wade’s men. They started without Raynel Lightbourne, who hit a hat-trick on Boxing Day but is missing with a mouth injury, and Stanton Lewis, the lynchpin of their defence, who is off the Island.

Wade responded to Lewis’ unavailability by slotting Otis Steede, his and possibly the country’s best midfield player, into the sweeper’s position — and he was up against it from the off.

But first Durrant was called into action in the fourth minute when he saved from Jahvon Mallory. Five minutes later, Sharrieff overpowered Steede but put his left-foot shot wide with only Quincy Hunt to beat.

Both goalkeepers remained busy in an entertaining opening, as Durrant was well placed to save an acrobatic shot by Stephen Astwood and then did superbly to deny a smart header by Russell on the end of a Mike Williams cross. Hunt, meanwhile, had to be sharp to tip over a 25-yard free-kick by Anthony Thomas.

The opening goal was as surprising as the finishing was clinical with Nusum, who had been kept in check until the 22nd minute, battling with Chris Furbert to find space in the middle and giving a violent flick of the head that redirected a Tori Davis cross well beyond the flailing dive of Hunt.

Celebrations were muted as a 2,000-strong crowd came to terms with the quality of the strike but there was no denying his second — an over-the-shoulder shot that conjured memories of Rivaldo’s wonder strike against Valencia.

However, before Nusum’s second significant contribution, both teams spurned chances when it looked easier to score. First, in the 32nd minute, the hard-working Williams caught Karl Parfitt in possession at the halfway line and raced in on a two-on-one with Russell against Thomas. But instead of seizing on his chance to release Russell, Williams tried to take Thomas on and the chance was lost.

Minutes later, Kevin Richards was put in on Durrant by Russell and, after taking the ball round the ‘keeper with his right foot, failed to get his less favoured left around the shot, with Thomas again clearing the danger.

At the other end, it was the turn of Nakia Smith to look a gift horse in the mouth when he was found three yards in front of goal by Nusum’s good work on the right. Not once, not twice, but three times was Smith foiled at point-blank range by Hunt, with the final effort forced away for a corner.

Hunt’s blushes were spared in the 38th minute when he dived under a bouncing shot by Smith that came back off a post and Vince Minors hit the rebound, after a mad scramble, narrowly wide.

This set the stage for Nusum’s master-class a minute later. The forward took a pass in traffic on his chest and fired instinctively over his left shoulder to produce a leading candidate for goal of the season.

If PHC were left deflated by this turn of events, the air was taken fully out of their sails when Jamal Simmons scored from 35 yards three minutes into the second-half.

A symbol of energy throughout, Simmons made a run from his right-back position and, having exhausted his options, let fire with a shot that took a slight deflection before settling into the right-hand corner of a flat-footed Hunt’s net.

It would get better for PHC, but more significantly due to a decrease in the standard of Wolves’ play. Sharrieff received his first caution in the 50th minute for dissent after referee Stuart Crockwell blew for a foul in his favour.

Richards, by way of a deflection, beat Durrant for the first time but the shot hit the inside of the left upright and the goalkeeper recovered well to prevent the ball crossing the line. Durrant was then called on to turn over a drive by Williams before his good positioning kept a rocket header by Richards out of the net.

Wolves’ play had a ragged look to it by now as possession was squandered readily. However, on one counter-attack, Nusum came close to completing his hat-trick, but a left-foot drive squeezed under Hunt and past the far upright.Continued on Page 28