Stoppage-time own goal lifts Montego Bay United past Cavalier in JPL semi opener

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Montego Bay United head into the return leg of their Jamaica Premier League semi-final with a narrow advantage over reigning champions Cavalier, after a 1-0 victory in Sunday's first meeting at the National Stadium.

The decisive moment arrived in stoppage time at the end of the second half, when Adrian Reid Jr turned a corner delivery into his own net and gave the western Jamaica side the edge ahead of Wednesday's second leg at the same venue.

Montego Bay United carried most of the attacking threat throughout the contest but found Cavalier's back line difficult to penetrate for much of the evening. Early on, Malachi Sterling thought he had opened the scoring, only for the effort to be ruled out when he was judged offside.

Cavalier's best chance after the break fell to Dwight Merrick, whose strike beat the goalkeeper but struck the crossbar and bounced away.

The breakthrough finally came three minutes into time added at the end of the second half, when Reid misread a corner and sent the ball past his own goalkeeper.