Although Harbour View have been knocked off their perch recently and are looking shaky, having failed to take three points from five games, there is one player on the team who must come in for some commendation.
Watching the ‘The Stars of the East’ over the last three years, you would be hard pressed to find a game that Richard ‘Short Man’ Edwards has not started in.
Most people would have known Short Man from his days at Santos when he showed himself to be a rugged, no-nonsense midfielder, who made sure beating his team was no easy feat.
From there he went to Waterhouse and though he showed himself comfortable with the level of football in the Premier League, he never seemed completely suited to the team. On occasion he would be pulled from the team and on others he would not get the starts he deserved.
Moving on to what he must now consider, ‘greener pastures’, Edwards made an immediate impact on a Harbour View team, which, quite frankly, lacked bite and venom in the middle of the park.
That was not true after the diminutive midfielder began to maraud around the central midfield position. What was even more interesting was that other aspects of his game began to improve as well. He began to show himself to be a more-than-average passer of the ball and on occasion, a good striker of it too. Santos and Waterhouse’s loss is now Harbour View’s gain.
The midfielder went on to win one title with Harbour View and could very well enjoy others if he continues to be the rock he has.
In more specific terms, Edwards’ presence allows, at different times, freedom to players, who would normally have more defensive duties to perform. Jermaine Hue, for instance can play higher up the park and be more integral in stringing together goal opportunities.
As a matter of fact, it was Edwards’ good defensive work, which allowed Hue the opportunity to concentrate his energies on making a little dribble across the 18-yard box from which he struck an 89th minute goal in Harbour View’s last game, a 2-1 victory, against Arnett Gardens. In that game, Edwards’ mastery of the defensive midfielder role, also allowed Marcelino Blackburn to get higher up the pitch and he was able to react first to a loose ball well inside his opponent’s box to give Harbour View an equalizer.
Intangibles like that cannot be discounted, and that is what Edwards brings to the Premier League. Small in stature, it is easy to think he might not be physically able to ‘rough it up’ in the middle of the park but he does.
He’s short and you would think that makes him easy to outjump, it doesn’t, he is very good in the air. Then his tough tackling attitude would also tend to lull you into thinking he is weak when he attacks, he isn’t. All these make ‘Short Man’ one to watch and worthy of this week’s Spotlight.