Western domino championship heats up

Western Bureau:

Teams in all three zones of the Charley's JB Overproof Rum-sponsored Western Jamaica Domino competition are gearing up for another round of high-quality games this weekend.

Premier League defending champions Strike Force will be aiming to cop a second straight victory when the 19 Barnett Street-based team meets Fighter Jet of Carey Park in Trelawny tomorrow.

That match will be played at Strike Force's headquarters, where the team suffered an opening-round loss against Trelawny's Deeside Untouchables recently.

"We are all ready - both physically and mentally prepared - to take on Fighter Jet, which is one of the biggest teams in the competition," said Rowan Wallis, a long-standing member of Strike Force.

Wallis told The Gleaner that Strike Force have long been a predominant team in the competition, which has always succeeded in bringing a greater level of unity among communities.

"Most times, in terms of violence, you would find that persons would not go into other communities, but because of this competition, you find that this is not the case. It brings back the love in communities and, so far, there has not been any violence in it for years," he outlined.

Deeside, meanwhile, will travel to Drax Hall in St. Ann tomorrow to challenge home team Mighty Strikers.

Other Premier League matchups tomorrow include Unity Strikers against Classic, Hawkeye versus Dynamic Strikers, and Long Bay versus Dynasty.

Over in Division One, Dallas of Union Street, Montego Bay, will be going up against the Retrieve-based club, Western Stars, as both teams search for a second triumph in a row. On the other hand, Cool Wave of Falmouth Gardens will be hunting their first win when they meet Westmoreland's Grange Hill.

Tornado of Mount Salem, St James, are to meet Duncans, Trelawny-based Rainbow, while Assassin and Uptown will clash at the latter's home turf on Barnett Street in Montego Bay.

Meanwhile, the action in Division Two heats up dramatically when Broadway, who already have notched a victory from the first round of matches, go in search of another big one against Peace and Love at Paradise, Norwood, St James.

In other matches of the round, Pineapple take on Venus in what should be a very close matchup; Perry Strikers face Next Generation, and Creative Strikers oppose Knight Riders. Matches across all divisions will begin at a 1 p.m.