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Dunn’s hat-trick spur Tivoli to victory over Arnett
November 13, 2023
Justin Dunn scored a hat-trick as Jerome Waite made a winning return to the Anthony Spaulding Complex with Tivoli Gardens, who defeated his former club, Arnett Gardens, 3-1 in the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) yesterday.
The 20-year-old forward Dunn fired Tivoli into the lead after 25 minutes, and although Jaheem Thomas equalised for Arnett in the 39th minute, two second-half goals from Dunn in the 50th and 69th minutes steered the west Kingston-based Tivoli to a well-deserved three points.
"It was a great performance," Dunn said afterwards. " The coach told us earlier this week that this one is personal because he is the former coach of Arnett Gardens, so we did just that for him and won the game.
"Everybody applied themselves. We gave our all and got the win. I didn't expect a hat-trick, to be honest, but it came, and I am thankful," Dunn commented.
Tivoli, the better of the two teams yesterday, took the lead when Dunn guided home an opportunity midway through the first half, but Arnett levelled before the half-time break thanks to Thomas' strike.
However, the visitors continued to take the game to their opponents, and five minutes into the second half, Dunn raced through and fired home their second. The young forward added a third with a deflected shot from 18 yards to put the game out of reach.
Arnett had an excellent opportunity to pull another goal back before the end, but Kimani Auboine placed his penalty wide of the target.
"We weren't smart enough with decision making when playing out from the back.
"They were more aggressive, they created better chances. Credit must be given to Tivoli. They were good in transition, but we weren't good tonight, and I must apologise to the fans for that. We have to get better," said Arnett's coach, Xavier Gilbert.
Winning coach Jerome Waite believes the win was a big boost for the community.
"Happy is an understatement. The Tivoli Gardens family is happy. This is something we look forward to," said Waite, who was sacked by Arnett in 2019.
He also stated that Dunn has a lot more to offer.
"It's a new generation of players. He will be one of the future, and I must guide him so he can maximise his potential and move forward," Waite said.
