Waterhouse look to close gap

With leaders Cavalier inactive today, a number of teams will be trying to take advantage of their situation to narrow the gap they have opened up at the top of the Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL) table.

Among the teams with that in mind are former champions Harbour View, who only last week recorded their second win. Today, they go up against the promoted Barbican, who recorded their first win of the season last week with a 1-0 away win over Humble Lion.

Ranique Muir, Jermie Lynch and McKaully Tulloch have been carrying the goal-scoring responsibility for Harbour View and should be able to get the better of the Barbican backline led by Shawn Lawes who transformed himself from a goalkeeper to an outfield player.

Boys' Town have not been having the best of form and recently lost close ties to neighbours Arnett Gardens and Tivoli Gardens 2-3 and 1-2, respectively. They have been consistent in scoring goals, but have also consistently given up more than they have scored. In 17-year-old Shamar Nicholson, they have a very bright prospect but starting in every game and playing for more than an hour could soon start taking a toll on him.

Reno, Boys' Town's opponents today, do not need an invitation to shoot and score. Craig Foster made it known early in the season that his plan is to break into the national set up. With 10 goals from seven games, most of them from open play, the national coach will find it very difficult to ignore him when he pencils down his squad for the upcoming Caribbean Cup. Another goal or two today from Foster will write his name in bold letters for the squad.

Eighth-placed Montego Bay United are looking like anything but defending champions this season and were fortunate last week, when the elements ended their game prematurely as they trailed to Rivoli. Humble Lion, their opponents today, have not distinguished themselves at all this season and Technical Director Craig Butler would welcome a win as it would at least temporarily remove his neck from the guillotine.

Wolry Wolfe has looked decent for Humble Lion but he will need more from the supporting cast and Devon Hodges now needs to start producing the goals for his new team.

Rivoli United have featured in high-scoring games against promoted teams Barbican and Reno. They won the first and lost the second heavily. Waterhouse, the team they host today, are a very balanced unit with particular strength in attack. After getting a telling off from their coach, Anthony Patrick, after their less than impressive win over Barbican midweek, the Waterhouse strikers would want to do enough to put that performance aside as their bad game for the season.

Romario Campbell looks like a rejuvenated person having shed the extra pounds and moving with ease and quickness. If he continues to spray his defence-splitting passes then Jermaine Anderson and company should be happy while the Rivoli goalkeeper could have a busy afternoon.

Sporting Central often flatter to deceive. They often start strong, play attractive football and score goals before falling off. This season they barely got going and find themselves sitting at the bottom of the table. Their saving graces are the fact that they have played at least two games less than everyone else and that in FranÁois Swaby they have someone who knows where the goal is.

After being the last team to lose their unbeaten run in the league Arnett Gardens now find themselves in a slump after losing two games in succession and would want to avoid the hat trick. Dicoy Williams was a stabilising influence in the backline and if he returns today fully fit, they could return to the force they were.