Portmore set to seal berth

Nodley Wright, Gleaner Writer

Portmore United could confirm their place in the end-of-second-round final of the Digicel Premier League with a victory over Waterhouse when the League resumes today after the Christmas break.

Portmore United have fallen short on two occasions having managed just one point from their last two games, losing away to Arnett Gardens and drawing at home to Boys' Town. Today, they will have to return the favour to the Waterhouse team which beat them 1-0 at Ferdie Neita Park in the final game of the first round.

Waterhouse have not been the same team in the second round losing their impregnable record at home with the likes of Sporting Central and Boys' Town beating them there. On the road, they have not been much better as St Georges also claimed their scalp at Lynch Park. With that being the case, Portmore United should be given the edge but with the likes of Kenardo Forbes, Vincent Earle, goalkeeper Richard McCallum and the inspirational veteran Kevin Lamey they could find their form at any minute.

Maturity and class

Steven Morrissey has shown a lot of maturity and class this season and a good performance from him as well as Rafe Wolfe, Ricardo Cousins, Eric Vernan and Mario Swaby could be crucial to a victory for Portmore.

Both Arnett Gardens and Sporting Central are in excellent position to capitalise on a slip up by Portmore United to capture one of the places in the final or to rule Portmore United out entirely if they both win and Portmore United lose. Neither team should travel with a lot of optimism.

Sporting Central will be playing away to a Harbour View team that must be feeling very comfortable having beaten leaders Tivoli Gardens 3-2 and whipping Benfica 4-0 in their last two games. What was also more pleasing for Harbour View who are also in with a chance of making the final is the fact that both Jermaine Hue and Kemar Petrekin found the back of the net.

Arnett Gardens will not find the going easy at Effortville, as Humble Lion appear to be running into some kind of form having won their last three games, and in the process, scoring more than one goal in their last two games - something they had not managed previously. In achieving their three-game winning run they have also climbed out of the relegation zone.

Paul 'Tegat' Davis has transformed the Arnett Gardens team and has done what few others have been able to do - get quality play from Rohan Reid and is gradually making the team younger. The veteran Kirk Ramsay has really embraced the responsibility given to him and if Leon Strickland could take a chapter out of his book then they could get the better of Humble Lion.

With no chance of making the end of round final, first round winners Tivoli Gardens will be concentrating on the bigger picture as they seek to regain their form and create some space between themselves and the teams that trail them.

Reno, on the other hand, will want to return to winning ways. Sitting in seventh position on 25 points, they are just four points above the relegation zone, and could easily be dragged there with two losses. Their chances of staying above the drop zone will not be helped by the extension of the country's Under-17 camp by another three weeks, as it means a lengthened absence for coach Wendell Downswell.

Benfica's last win was six matches ago over Village United. Since then, they have lost five in a row and this could have the Boys' Town team in a good mood ahead of their visit to Collie Smith Drive. The day could end that way for them if the visitors do not sort out their internal problems which have threatened to derail them for most of the second round.

Boys' Town have been inconsistent all season and while they should be fancied to get the better of Benfica at home, if they can get captain Michael Campbell, Anthony Bennett and Joel Williams on the same page, Benfica could be in for a torrid time.

Signs of life

St Georges will be hoping that the good results continue to flow their way as they face fellow relegation zone dwellers Village United away from home. After being the whipping boys of all comers, St Georges have managed to show signs of life under the guidance of coach Geoffrey Maxwell and have even managed to record back to back wins over Reno and Waterhouse, both at home.

St Georges have also managed to win the Portland Co-operative Credit Union knockout title, scoring eight goals in the final with a hat-trick and a double strike from Dever Orgill and Leon Irving respectively.

While St Georges have been improving their performances, Village United have found themselves slipping down the table despite looking good initially under the tutelage of Brazilian Nedeir dos Santos. Since their 1-0 win over Harbour at the Harbour View Mini-Stadium, the Trelawny-based Village United have lost three matches in a row.

• Round Two points standing

(Tabulated under Teams, P-Play, W-Win, D-Draw, L-Lose, GF-Goals For, GA-Goals Against, Pts-Points, TGP- Total Games Played, OP-Overall Points.)

P W D L GF GA GD Pts TGP OP

Portmore 10 6 2 2 12 5 7 20 21 37

Sporting 10 5 3 2 15 10 5 18 21 31

Arnett 10 5 3 2 10 7 3 18 21 29

H View 10 5 2 3 13 7 6 17 21 33

Tivoli 10 4 3 3 14 11 3 15 21 38

Boys' Town 10 4 3 3 8 7 1 15 21 35

Humble Lion 10 3 3 4 10 8 2 12 21 22

St Georges 10 4 0 6 6 9 -3 12 21 17

Reno 10 2 5 3 9 9 0 11 21 25

Waterhouse 10 2 4 4 7 10 -3 10 21 35

Village 10 2 3 5 10 15 -5 9 21 21

Benfica 10 2 1 7 6 22 -16 7 21 24

• Today's games

1. 3 p.m: Humble Lion vs Arnett Gardens - Effortville Community Centre
   
2. 3 p.m: Boys Town FC vs Benfica - Boys' Town
   
3. 6 p.m: Waterhouse vs Portmore United - Drewsland Stadium
   
4. 6 p.m: Harbour View vs Sporting Central - Harbour View Stadium
   
5. 6 p.m: Village United vs St Georges - Jarrett Park
   
6. 3 p.m: Reno vs Tivoli Gardens - Frome Complex