Twenty year-old Jamaican striker Dane Kelly is making quite a name for himself in the USL Pro League for Charleston Battery after his under-the-radar loan move from Tivoli Gardens last month, grabbing a few headlines after impressive pre-season displays, as well as a notable showing in the team's first league match on the weekend.

Kelly, who signed for the third division team along with fellow Jamaican Evan Taylor - who made his move from Reno, has set the team alight with his explosive pace and is already beginning to pay dividends; forcing a defender into a costly mistake that led to an own goal on Saturday against the Charlotte Eagles.

This came after the former Jamaica Football Federation/PLCA Under 21 league's leading scorer had scored a goal and created a penalty in his team's 2-1 pre-season win against Major League Soccer's (MLS) Toronto FC.

back-room staff

Kelly, who was scouted during a seven-day trip to Jamaica by the Battery's back-room staff, is reported to have had an excellent league debut, causing all sorts of trouble for opposing defenders with his speed and testing the goalkeeper on four occasions.

Head coach Mike Anhaeuser is clearly impressed by the young striker and already seems convinced that he has a long-term role to play in the team.

"Dane showed he can hold his own against quality competition," Anhaeuser is quoted as saying on www.postandcourier.com. "He has tremendous pace up top and he's very dangerous with the ball at his feet. His potential is unlimited."

"He has the type of speed that causes problems. His work rate at both ends of the field is terrific. He worked very hard defensively, pressuring them, so I thought he had a great game," Anhaeuser added. "He needs to work on some of his technical skill, but you can't teach that kind of pace. He's going to be able to open things up for the rest of our attack with his pace."

The coach is hoping that Kelly's time with the club will stretch beyond the current arrangements of his season-long loan.

"The funny thing was we actually didn't go to the club where Dane (Kelly) was, he just played in one of the games we watched and we were able to visit that club and work it out to where he'll be on loan for the season and we'll see what happens in the future," Anhaeuser said.

Kelly was brought in by Anhaeuser to fill a void created by the departure of the Battery's key striking pair Lamar Neagle and Tom Heinemann, who have both graduated to MLS teams while Taylor, who did not figure in Saturday's league opener, will be hoping to get a chance to show his worth for the South Carolina-based club.