Waterhouse striker Kevin Lamey.

WATERHOUSE appeared to have conquered the defensive frailties that engineered their downfall for a large portion of the first round and are now on the improve. Village United haven't been able to find a way to strangle a similar problem and are on a freefall.

With two victories in their past three games and most important, a single concession, the 'Firehouse' crew will be looking to pour some more heat on Village United in today's spotlight Digicel Premier League match, scheduled to kick off at 4 p.m. at the Drewsland Mini Stadium.

The home team, without key central defender Marco McDonald, the former Reggae Boy, went through a rugged patch as they conceded heavier than a reasonable scoring rate. Just four matches ago, they had let in 18 goals, while scoring 15, as they went through a sequence in which they were conceding goals at a rate of three a game.

evened odds

Now they have evened up the odds a bit to have a level goal difference of 20 goals for and 20 against.

Hugh 'Bingi' Blair, who took over after Wayne Fairclough left the job, targeted tightening their defence as a priority and it now seems to have kicked in, leading to victories for which they were desperate. Though not giving a pretty display last week, the joy of capping the Big W was evident in Blair's assessment after squeezing out a 1-0 away win over Meadhaven.

"Maybe it was not pretty as the fans would have liked, but we came out with a victory," he said as his team moved to a clear sixth.

notable hit men

With notable hit men Kevin Lamey and Jermaine Anderson on the front-line, their target will be another win and Village appear ripe for the taking.

The Trelawny team has lost eight of its last nine games, managing only to take a point off Arnett Gardens in a 1-1 draw in early November.

Paul 'Tegat' Davis, the man who lifted them from relegation with a winning sequence - seven in eight matches - not dissimilar to their current floppy trend, returned to the helm at the beginning of this round four matches ago.

After losing 1-0 to Tivoli last week Davis called their effort "lazy" and Village, with Fabian Dawkins among their charges, will have to significantly lift their levels to curb the floundering form and poor position, one off the cellar at 12 points.

On the points tables, the contrast between Tivoli and Arnett Gardens is extreme. However, statistics count for little when these arch rivals from neighbouring communities meet. While bragging rights are at stake, points is optimum for both with Lenworth Hyde Sr-coached Tivoli, seeking to maintain their hectic chase for the title, and Arnett, with player/coach Fabian Davis, battling survival.

Tivoli are second just two points off the lead and while they have generally played beautiful football, importantly, they are finding ways to win when their game is off.

"I have to lift my hat off to them because the conditions did not allow for good football, but they played well to win," Hyde Sr admitted after veteran midfielder Steve Green fired home the winner at Village last Sunday.

plenty of quality

They have plenty of quality and are given the edge, not only as hosts but based on consistency, in what should be a tight contest.

Arnett are seventh with 14 points, but only three off the bottom.

Their position, however, does not give a true reflection of how well they have been playing.

Remarkably, 12 of their 15 games have been decisive and 11 of them were settled by just one goal, including last week's win over Sporting Central that lifted them out of the cellar.

"It was an ugly win, but a needy three points," Davis noted afterwards.

Their plight for wins is unending and having earned their first points this season with a win in the corresponding first-round fixture, Arnett should be fairly confident of succeeding again.

portmore on a roll

Since losing at Tivoli on November 9 last year, Portmore United have racked up six consecutive wins as they made a big move to now lie only two points off leaders Harbour View.

The defending champions rose from the dead with goals in the 89th minute and stoppage time for a win away at Reno 2-1 last Sunday, following which coach Linval Dixon admitted that "we want to continue winning and put pressure on the leaders".

They are heavily favoured to extend their winning run with their talisman Roen Nelson a good bet to score. He has slammed home five goals in three matches since he rejoined the team from the Trinidad and Tobago semi-pro league, where he represented Joe Public.

Not to be outdone, Mead-haven have a decent crop of players, including Keammar Daley and Premier League veteran Rohan Reid. But they are affected by the little errors like concentration lapses at key moments, that have contributed to narrow losses and their lowly position just a point off the bottom.

After losing at Arnett last week, Christopher Dawes, coach of last-placed Sporting Central Academy, admitted they're "not under pressure, we're just in a rut".

They need to start digging fast and have a good place to begin, at homely Brancourt.

Second-year Premier League outfit from Portland, St Georges, lie fifth in the standings on 26 points.

biggest threat

Daniel Shaw and Damion Harwood will pose their biggest threat to Sporting and, despite the disparity in positions, St Georges' manager, Derrick Lewis, noted they won't be underrating their opponents.

"We can't look at a team because they're at the bottom of the table and brush them aside," Lewis said. "Each game that we play, our objective is to get three points. We'll be hoping to leave there with three points, but we're not discrediting them because they're at the bottom of the tables."

gunning for maximum

Coming off what assistant coach Donovan 'DV' Hayles labelled a "hard match" when they tied Rivoli 1-1 away last week, Harbour View will be gunning for the maximum when they host Reno in one of the late-evening games.

The first-round fixture, a two-goal game, ended all square at Frome but with Tivoli and Portmore breathing down their necks, the end-of-first-round champions whose scoring has been led by Lovel Palmer will be looking to maintain their slight advantage over the struggling Westmoreland team, which lies two points off the bottom.

Devon Hodges has been hot for Rivoli with at least 10 goals, but Andrew Price's men should pack too much firepower for the Spanish Town team and remain fourth to maintain their challenge for the title.

File photos - Village United's Fabian Dawkins