Reigning Premier League champions Barbados Defence Force Sports Programme (BDFSP) and former champions Weymouth Wales FC are now tied on seven points in the standings after victories last night.
Digicel-sponsored Barbados Football Association Premier League action took place at the Empire Ground yesterday and Klaytons Cola Tonic Notre Dame held on to a close 3-2 victory against Silver Sands FC. The BDFSP defeated Brittons Hill United FC 1-0 while in the final game on the night Wales won 2-1 over Pride of Gall Hill.
Notre Dame wasted no time getting the ball rolling in the third minute when striker Dwayne Mars received the ball on the right flank of the field, cut back the ball and turned with it around the Silver Sands defender who found it difficult to defend. Mars sent in a cross inside the 18-yard-box and Ronaldo Seale was there to kick the ball into the back of the nets.
The ball is cleared by the Silver Sands defender as Notre Dame’s striker Dwayne Mars (centre) who had a major impact on the game tries to get possession.
Silver Sands responded almost immediately when the ball was deflected inside the box and Rico Forde headed the ball into the goal bars to level the scores 1-1 in the eighth minute.
Mars was in action once again for Notre Dame and scored when John ‘Nobby’ Parris took out a Silver Sands defender and passed the ball up the right of the field to striker Akeem Gill who crossed the ball over to Mars who was lurking inside the box and Mars finished well with his right instep to the right of the goal bar and scored in the 26th minute to make it 2-1.
The men from the Bayland went up 3-1 just before half-time in the 42nd minute when the ball was played inside the box to Gill who evaded his marker and chipped the ball over the head of Silver Sands’ goalkeeper Justin Johnson and scored.
Silver Sands however kept pressing forward and managed to score in the 68th minute when the Notre Dame defenders appeared distracted and Cleon Culley kicked the ball from 20 yards out and the ball was missed by Notre Dame goalkeeper Kareem Farrell and curled into the left corner post of the bars. However, that was far as they would get on the scoresheet and Notre Dame came away with full points.
The game between Brittons Hill and BDFSP saw neither team managing to score a goal in the first half with both sharing equal ball possession. The drought however finally ended in the second half of play when BDFSP played the ball up the left of the field to the BDFSP captain Romario Harewood and he kicked a low shot to the right of the custodian and into the nets.
Stefan Batson of Brittons Hill and BDFSP’s Chai Lloyd fight for ball possession in a game that was keenly contested.
Wales and Pride of Gall Hill appeared a bit unsettled when the two sides met last night in the final match but Pride of Gall Hill steadied themselves and scored in the 15th minute through Troy Speed. Three minutes later Wales worked the ball around and in the 18th minute they leveled the score when Wales’ striker Jomo Harewood received the ball and saw Gall Hill goalkeeper Jerome Blackman approaching and chipped the ball over his head to score. Another goal was added in the 23rd minute by Hadan Holligan to give Wales the 2-1 advantage leading into the second half and that was how the game eventually ended with a a few opportunities going to waste in the second half.
(Photographs by Morissa Lindsay)