Last season's T&T Premier Football League (TTPFL) top two finishers Defence Force and AC PoS had contrasting results when league action resumed with a double-header at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo on Thursday night.
Defending champions Defence Force (34 points) jumped to third spot on the 11-team TTPFL table as they rallied late to blank the Eagles FC 2-0, while AC PoS (35 points) were surprisingly held to a 1-1 draw by the eighth-placed Prisons FC.
In the first match, Defence Force got a stern test from an Eagles outfit which looked like the more fluent outfit in the first half, particularly with the trickery of Haitian attacker Exilus Angelo. In the 37th minute, the diminutive Angelo drew a fine save from Soca Warriors custodian Christopher Biggette at the end of a flowing Eagles counter-attack.
In the 53rd minute, Biggette was called into action from point-blank range once again when striker Malachi Celestine sent a tame effort on goal after dancing past defender Jelani Felix in a one-on-one sequence.
The reigning champions were far from their best, but they capitalised on Eagles' lack of sharpness in front of goal to kill off the game with a pair of quick strikes.
Mere seconds after entering the match, Army midfielder Nathaniel Garcia broke the deadlock in the 69th minute when he scored with a crisp left-footed shot from close range after receiving a low cross from striker Brent Sam.
Four minutes later, Defence Force doubled their lead when midfielder Matthew Woo-Ling beat goalkeeper Miles Goodman with a deflected left-footed shot after a neat exchange with substitute Rivaldo Coryat.
Last season, the inaugural TTPFL title slipped out of AC PoS' hands when they were defeated by the Army in the final game of the campaign. Trailing this season's leaders Miscellaneous Police FC (38 points) by four points before kickoff in Mucurapo, the AC PoS players would have been getting flashbacks when striker Ricardo John gave Prisons the lead in the 19th minute. At the end of a counter-attack, John beat veteran goalkeeper Marvin Phillip with a looping header following a lovely scooped pass from Nathaniel Perouse.
Prisons' early goal set the pattern for the game as they defended with their bodies on the line and tried to strike on the counter with lone striker John.
Former Army goalkeeper Aaron Enill was in fine fettle for Prisons and he made a total of seven saves, while his defenders also made key blocks to keep AC PoS at bay.
In the 51st minute, Prison's resistance was broken when Sedale McLean scored from close range after receiving a service from Michel Poon-Angeron.
In search of the precious win to move within a point of Police, AC PoS laid siege on the Prisons goal. However, an inspired Enill denied AC PoS on every attempt to preserve the point, including two fine reaction saves to stop lanky Grenadian striker Jamal Charles
Though they still trail Police by three points, AC PoS will take solace in having a game in hand on their closest rivals. Both Defence Force and Police have two games left, while AC PoS have three games remaining.
League action will resume tomorrow when Police travel to Tobago to face 1976 FC Phoenix in a rescheduled match from 5.30 pm at the Dwight Yorke Stadium, Bacolet.
TTFPL tier one standings:
Team*GP*W*D*L*GF*GA*GD*Pts
1.Police FC*18*11*5*2*39*17*22*38
2.AC PoS*17*10*5*2*40*19*21*35
3.Defence Force FC*18*10*4*4*33*18*15*34
4.Club Sando*18*9*5*4*30*21*9*32
5.La Horquetta Rangers*18*7*4*7*36*33*3*25
6.Point Fortin Civic*18*6*5*7*25*20*5*23
7.1976 FC Phoenix*16*7*1*8*24*29*-5*22
8.Prisons FC*19*7*1*11*24*35*-11*22
9.Caledonia*18*5*6*7*26*25*1*21
10.Eagles FC*18*5*4*9*21*28*-7*19
11.Central FC*18*0*2*16*12*65*-53*2
SOURCE: T&T Newsday
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