Howard Walker, Staff Reporter
Tivoli Garden's Fabian Davis (left) fights for possession of the ball with Kemeel Wolfe of Portmore during their last encounter at the Ferdie Neita Park. Portmore won. - RICARDO MAKYN/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
A DEGREE of normalcy returns to the Wray and Nephew National Premier League this afternoon after the tragic event at the weekend which claimed the life of Waterhouse coach Peter Cargill.
Four games have been scheduled with Waterhouse and Harbour View idle for different reasons.
Waterhouse have been given the time off to mourn the death of Cargill while Harbour View have eight players on national duty against Guatemala tonight in an international friendly in Atlanta.
The rescheduled games were postponed as a mark of respect Sunday, following Cargill's death on Saturday while travelling for a Premier League match against Montego Bay's Wadadah.
All eyes will be on the clash between defending champions Tivoli Gardens and title favourites Portmore United at the Edward Seaga Stadium at 5:00 p.m.
REGULAR STARTERS OUT
Portmore, the second end-of-round winners will be without three of their regular starters in goalkeeper Shawn Sawyers, defender Tyrone Sawyers and top marksman Kevin Deerr on national duty.
But such is the strength of their programme that capable replacements especially from the Under-21s should solve their problems.
In Portmore's last two games, they lost 1-0 to Arnett Gardens in the Red Stripe Champions Cup using six players from the Under 21s and dropped two valuable points against Reno in a 1-1 draw.
But coach Paul Young, is not a worried man saying those results should not be seen as a drop in form and "there is no time to panic".
Portmore have 52 points, a two point advantage over Waterhouse, with Tivoli a further two points back in third.
Tivoli Gardens will be without Fabian Davis, Lenny Hyde Jnr and Marco McDonald, all on the injury list, while striker Roland Dean is with the Reggae Boyz squad.
It should be an interesting game as both team will not want to drop any points as the push for a semi-final spot is the aim especially as the race is down to five teams.
One team that will want both Portmore and Tivoli to drop points will be Arnett Gardens lurking in fifth position on 40 points, seven behind fourth place Harbour View and eight behind Tivoli Gardens.
Should Arnett Gardens get the better of Arlington, as expected, the gap could be down to four points with both Tivoli and Harbour View in their sights.
Arlington, on the other hand, are desperate for points in their relegation battle. Currently they are on 16 points, four behind Reno and a fighting effort is expected. But with turmoil in their camp, a victory looks unlikely.
Just as the top teams push for a semi-final spot, the lesser teams are fighting for survival in the league and their clashes are just as interesting.
Constant Spring, on 21 points, are five points above the relegation zone and will want to stretch the cushion with a victory over bottom team Invaders, who are on 12 points and favourites to be relegated.
Meanwhile, Reno, the pride of Westmoreland, are lying perilously close to the relegation zone on 20 points and could get the better of mid-table team Rivoli on 25 points, who might be content with their position and have little to fight for.
