Vere ready to take on finalists

Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL newcomers Vere United has the daunting task of playing last season RSPL finalists, Waterhouse and Portmore United in their opening two matches of this season's competition.

But their coach, Michael Bennett, is embracing the challenge, declaring that he will not lose either fixture and that his team's performances against the league's two best teams of last season should send a strong message to the rest of the competition of what to expect when they play Vere in this season's RSPL.

"We are playing Waterhouse and then Portmore and that is how we have been thrown in the deep end. But I see it in a good way because when we put our teams in place against these teams, other teams will start be wary. We are no walkovers and if Waterhouse or Portmore is thinking this, they will have to rethink that. We are not going to lose. We are not going into Waterhouse to lose and we are not entertaining any losing from Portmore at home when they come the following week, and it (performances) should send a message to the other teams," Bennett said.

"I work very hard along with my coaches, Dwayne Atkinson, Bobby Brown and Anthony Davis and I have a good staff that will put up a good challenge against any of these teams. So we are not afraid of any team but these teams should be afraid of us because of our unknown quantity and in terms of our chemistry and what we bring to the Premier League. Our strong point is that they don't know anything about us and that will be a lot of teams downfall until they realise what they are up against," he noted

Impressive record

"We have the confidence wherever we go and we have a record to defend because we have gone 22 games unbeaten. I had reached 23 with (former team) White Horses and I have one more game to reach that point and I want to go past that," he said.

Bennett expects players like Tashaine Campbell, Christopher Randall, Devroy Gray, Laston Reid, Jovell Plunkett, Raynor Elliot, Sean Coleman, and Andrew Issacs to be the foundation that the Clarendon club build around this season.