By Bob McPhee,Staff Writer

DIXFIELD – Hard work finally paid off for the Jay boys’ soccer team at sunny Harlow Park on Monday afternoon.

Brad Richards scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner with three minutes and 33 seconds left, for an exciting 3-2 win over Dirigo in a Mountain Valley Conference game.

The winning play resulted from a crossing pass by Travis Melcher. Richards booted the ball past Dirigo goalie Lenny Hall in to the far corner. The Tigers maintained their composure and scored 75 seconds after the Cougars had rallied.

Dirigo (1-2-1) rallied back from a two-goal deficit in the second half to tie the game. Jon Smith and Gary Holman each scored a goal and assisted each other.

“It was a fun game to watch,” Jay coach Tim Noll said. “The boys showed a lot of heart and left it all on the field. Both teams had several excellent chances, and if the ball had bounced either way, Dirigo could have won 3-2.”

But Jay (1-3) had enough in reserve as both teams substituted freely in an effort to combat the heat. The wide-open game was offset by the solid play of Hall (seven saves) and Jay net netminder Matt Roundy (12 saves).

The initial Dirigo goal transpired when Wesley Gagnon had a throw-in. Holman controlled it and tipped the ball over to Smith who was set up in front of the goal. The Cougars received quality shots by Jeff Willis, Archie Roy, Jeremy Pratt and Brent Carter.

“We had good shots,” Dirigo coach Matt Brooks said. “But that’s the way our season has gone so far. We’re just not finishing. I had subbed freely in the first half to keep some fresh legs, and then we went long ball in the second half.”

Dirigo had a 20-to-12 advantage in shots and 5-1 on corners.

Jay also came up big on defense as Jamison Turner, Aaron Demillo, Dylan Stefani and Joe Gagnon each rotated back to clear balls out of the crease. The Tigers opened the scoring on a beautiful give-and-go from Ben Harvell to Kevan McElhaney 8:30 into the game.