In your neighbourhood

Wray & Nephew to sponsor pool tourney

Twenty of the top clubs in the island are slated to compete in a five-a-side eight-ball Jamaica Billiards Association Wray and Nephew-sponsored pools tournament.

Prize money is expected to exceed $500,000. Among the the clubs down to participate are Hot Shots from 113 Constant Spring Road, Mystix from Hagley Park Road, Chelsea from New Kingston, Upper Level from Mandeville, George's Pool Bar in May Pen, Big Man Corner in Montego Bay and High Roller and H2 from Portmore.

The Jamaica Billiards Association, for which Nicky Lawrence is president, recently benefited from high-profile sponsorship from Cal's Manufacturing for an islandwide pools tour comprising seven monthly tournaments (singles), each offering $80,000 to the winners.

Domino body looking to World Champs

With Jamaica preparing to host the 10th staging of the World Championships of Domino in June 2012, the National Association of Domino Bodies (NADB) is in the process of preparing a Jamaica team to contest the 9th World Championship in San Jose, Costa Rica from June 6-10.

Recently, the NADB has been staging a number of 'trials' among players in the Business House competition for possible selection on the national teams. This is being held every Friday afternoon at the offices of Jamaica Electrical Technologies (JET), 36¹/² Lyndhurst Road.

According to NADB president Rey Smith, the players are being coached by Calman Barrett, who represented Jamaica in Russia two years ago.

Barrett, the chief executive officer of JET, is utilising his international experience to teach players the different rules to have come on stream in recent years. These include rotation pose (no more double six pose), a new points system of scoring and total mental domino to eliminate coding.

Smith said plans to host the World Championships of Domino by Jamaica in 2012 has the full support of Sports Minister Olivia 'Babsy' Grange.

Meadows join Rivoli in Confed semis

Another St Catherine team, Meadows, has confirmed an early spot in the South Central Confed Super League after defeating Naggo Head 2-1.

Meadows, who are the defending champions, jumped to 29 points and the top of Group B. With three rounds remaining, they cannot be caught by third-place Downs, who are on 19 points. They join former Digicel Premier League contenders Rivoli, who booked the first semi-final spot with four rounds to be completed.

Rivoli head Zone A on 30 points, a whopping 14 points more than Bodles, who have 16. A desperate battle is on for the second semi-final berth from this zone, as Newlands are a point behind on 15, with De la Vega next on 14, and New Bowens 13. Mile Gully - way back on nine - appear out of contention and headed towards relegation.

Clarendon's Monymusk (22 points) appear poised to book the other available semi-final spot in Zone B behind Meadows. Downs derailed their chance after crashing to a 3-2 home defeat at the hands of Tru-Juice, who had occupied last place. Monymusk also have a game in hand after the referee failed to turn up for their scheduled home encounter against Newell of St Elizabeth.

Other results last weekend: Rivoli defeated Mile Gully 2-0, Newlands stopped New Bowens 2-1 while De la Vega and Bodles drew 0-0.

Games on this weekend: Today - Bodles vs Rivoli. Tomorrow - Mile Gully vs New Bowens; Newlands vs De la Vega; Tru-Juice vs Monymusk; Naggo Head vs Downs; and Newell vs Meadows. Under-20 matches will precede Super League games.

Tafari Lions, Black River have upper hand

Mid-season finalists Black River and former champions Tafari Lions will take important leads into the second leg of the semi-finals of the Wray and Nephew-sponsored St Elizabeth Major League.

Last weekend, at the New Town Community Centre in Black River, Tafari Lions upstaged favourites Appleton 2-0, courtesy of second-half goals by Kemar Smith.

In the second semi-final played at the St Elizabeth Technical (STETHS) field in Santa Cruz, Kemar Walker's 61st-minute goal gave Black River a 1-0 win over Super Action.

However, only one second-leg semi-final will take place this weekend. Tafari Lions and Appleton will clash tomorrow at the STETHS ground starting at 3 p.m. Extra time and penalties will be facilitated in the event of a tie at the end of regulation play.

The second semi-final between Black River and Super Action has been put back to next week Thursday.

Gimme-Me-Bit take charge

Gimme-Me-Bit stopped bottom-place team Gayle 3-0 last weekend to open up a seven-point lead in the Claro/Captain's Bakery Clarendon Major League.

Gimme-Me-Bit have moved to 31 points from 12 games. Mid-season finalists Spartan Athletic are next with 24 points. Interestingly, both these teams have conceded the fewest goals - four - although the leaders have scored far more - with a whopping plus-17 goal difference.

Woodhall (23 points), who had moved to second two weeks ago after a string of victories, were stunned 3-1 by eighth-place team Freetown (12 points). Milk River moved to fourth on 22 points with consecutive victories. Leeloy Hill's 68th-minute strike gave them a 1-0 win over Original Hazard last Sunday, and in their next encounter on Thursday they clipped Gayle 2-1. Original Hazard stayed fifth on 19 points.

Games on this weekend: Today - Woodhall vs Gimme-Me-Bit at Turner's Oval. Tomorrow: Spartan vs York Town at Clarendon College; and Longwood vs Freetown at Monymusk.

New Green extend Manchester lead

New Green have have extended their lead atop The Captain's Bakery-sponsored Manchester Major League, after being awarded full points for an ill-tempered matchup with Star Liner which ended prematurely.

New Green collected the mandatory three points and a three-goal cushion, to move to 26 points and five clear of second-place Porus. Mid-season champions Hill Stars are third on 20 points but only by virtue of goal difference over Georges Valley.

Georges Valley collected their third straight victory last weekend with an exciting 3-2 win over Mandeville United at deCarteret College field, the home venue for both sides this season. Alex Webb and former STETHS daCosta Cup player George Wisdom gave Georges Valley a 2-0 lead inside the first 15 minutes before Mandeville United rebounded strongly, producing two strikes from Veron Cunningham (35th ) and Lincoln Blake (61st). However, Wisdom would break the hearts of the cellar dwellers with an 89th-minute strike.

Meanwhile, Comfort, who gained qualification this season after winning the Division Two competition last season, stayed above the relegation zone with a 2-0 away win over Young Diamonds at Hanbury. They are now sixth on 17 points.

Games on this weekend: Today - Young Diamonds vs Hillstars at Hanbury. Tomorrow: Porus vs Georges Valley; Star Liner vs Comfort at NCU field; and Kendal vs New Green.

Claro Clarendon Division One round-up

The Claro-sponsored Clarendon Division One competition currently has 36 teams across four equal zones of nine.

In Zone One, Bushy Park and Turners FC are joint leaders with seven points, followed by Summerfield who have six from two games. Springfield lead Zone Two after four completed rounds, with nine points compiled from three wins and a loss. Coffals have seven and Vanguard are next on five.

West Park, with nine points from five games, head Zone Three, followed by unbeaten Ebony Stars on eight, inclusive of two wins and two draws. Treadlight are third with seven points from three games.

Jamalco rule the roost in Zone Four where their 12 points have come from four games. They are yet to concede a goal and have scored 14. Mineral Heights, in second, are also unbeaten but their eight points have come from two wins and two draws. Third are Emmanuel Strikers, who have six points from four games.

PFM International, Faith in big clash

Power of Faith International (PFM) meet defending champions Faith Temple in the biggest clash of the season thus far in the feature match of a double-header in the Power of Faith Ministries 20/20 church cricket league at Lime Tree Oval this afternoon at 1:30.

PFM International are on top in Zone One with eight points from two games, while Faith Temple are in a three-way tie with Miracle Open Bible and Power & Light Ministries for second spot with four points.

In the opening match at the venue, Zone Two leaders Victory Open Bible (eight points) search for their third win in as many matches as they take on The Seniors, aiming at their second win from three tries.

Hopewell maintain Division Two lead

Hopewell remained the only team with a perfect win record in the Power Services Company Limited (PSCL)-sponsored Manchester Division Two competition after earning their third straight win with a 2-0 victory over Flavour. Earlier wins came against Cobbla/Gully Strikers (2-0) and Clandon Strikers (4-0).

Allied collected a second straight victory stopping Tri Star 1-0. Villa now have the distinction of the highest margin of victory since the start of the 2011 season after a 7-1 hammering of Central United.

Grey Ground, who lost 2-1 to Tri Star the previous week, rebounded with a 5-0 win over Fairfield. The final result of this week's round saw neighbours Old England and May Day drawing 2-2.

Matches slated for next week: Tuesday - Clandon Strikers vs Flavour at Long Pond. Wednesday - Hopewell vs Lynhurst at Holmwood Technical; Allied vs Grey Ground at St Toolies; May Day vs Villa at Victor Dixon High. Thursday - Harmons vs Fairfield; and Central United vs DC Strikers at Inverness.

Caribbean Classic face Passagefort United

Leaders Caribbean Classic (52 points) play away to fifth-place Passagefort United (45 points) in a key game in the Jamaica Domino Federation/Charley's JB Overproof Rum/Supreme Ventures Portmore/ St Catherine league at Myrtle Way, Old Passagefort, tomorrow.

Classic easily dismissed Garveymeade 300-204 last Sunday, whereas Passagefort scrambled home 300-297 over Westchester Nuckuz in their last outing. Passagefort have to come with an improved performance if they plan to stop their veteran opponents. In other games, Hurricane host Village Link at Bayside, Lime Tree Grove welcome Garveymeade at Lime Tree, defending champs Fort International are at home against former leaders Right Stuff at Passagefort Drive, Ackee Pod versus Triple X Old Harbour Bay in Spanish Town, North Street United entertain Correctional Services at March Pen Road, Colours Sports Bar host Eagle View, Eradication at home against Masterpiece at Gregory Park, and Caymanas Track take on Westchester Nuckuz.

Portmore Youths champions again

Portmore Youths regained their title after defeating Family FC 1-0 in the final of a six-a-side one-day tournament put on by the Portmore Lane Convenant Church, located along Portmore Avenue.

The defending champions got the vital goal from Knox Battise.

Eight teams participated in the one-day tournament. Oneil Dermott, from Different Page, a striker who scored a stunning goal in the preliminaries, was the tournament's leading scorer.

Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) representative, Robert Smith, spoke to the teams and encouraged them to continue playing football as there were opportunities for bettering their lives through football. He said he spotted some good talent among the teams and would pass on their names to some Premier League clubs. Sponsors include DigiPoint, Atlantic Plumbing Hardware; Horizon Industries; Unique Living.

According to Sharon Knight, one of the organisers of tournament, the competition has been run for the past three years as an outreach programme by the Portmore Lane Covenant Community Church, which seeks to instil pride and good values in the young men from the area. The competition is aimed at providing a healthy recreational alternative, particularly for the young men of Portmore Gardens, Newlands and Waterford. Most of the targeted youths are from inner-city/depressed communities in Portmore.

East Portmore, Westport in feature game

Third-place East Portmore Portals (19 points) will tomorrow face a stern challenge from second-place Westport (20 points) in a feature final preliminary game in the LIME Portmore Division Two football league at the Passagefort field. Kick-off time is 3 p.m.

The winners of this game will take the number-two ranking going into the semi-finals. A double-header is scheduled at the Hellshire field, as Hellshire take on last-place Daytona at 1 p.m. and Watson Grove square off with Queen's Park at 3 p.m. The semi-finals begin next Sunday.

Colours pair walk away with top prize

The Colours Sports Bar duo of Carl Henry and Norman Rhone walked away with the top prize in the Colours Sports Bar and Grill pairs knockout domino competition over the pair of Franklyn Robinson (Westchester Nuckuz), and M. Walker (Village Link) with a 10-9 win in an exciting final last Sunday. The winning pair shared $20,000 while the runners-up took home $10,000.

Seven teams down for U-13 league

Seven teams are down to compete in this year's Leander Marshall-sponsored Portmore Under-13 football league, which kicks off at the Passagefort playing field this afternoon.

The league kicks off with a triple-header with defending champions Cumberland opposing Garveymeade at 1 p.m. At 2:30 p.m., East Portals tackle Waterford and in the late game at 4 p.m. Clifton challenge Wanderers.