GEORGE TOWN, Grand Cayman:

DEVON HODGES' scoring exploits, particularly his recent form in national colours, have landed the stocky striker in esteemed company.

After notching a hat-trick against a Cayman Islands all-star team in a match that was blown off after 70 minutes in pouring rain and lightning, similarities were drawn between the Rivoli United hit man and one of the nation's best ever.

That coming from Reggae Boyz head coach, Theodore Whitmore, who knows quite a bit about scoring, signifies the extent of his achievements thus far, even though his latest feat was registered against lowly opponents on Thursday night.

"To be honest with you, Hodges reminds me of a Paul 'Tegat' Davis," said Whitmore, a former national and Seba United clubmate of Davis, the nation's leading all-time scorer.

"It's been a long time we haven't seen a goalscorer, a finisher like Hodges and that's going well for us," Whitmore added of the striker.

MVP award

Hodges was invited to the national team recently after leading the Premier League in scoring with 25 goals and he ended up eventually earning the Most-Valuable-Player award.

In back-to-back matches for Jamaica, he has scored. Just weeks ago, he opened the scoring against Panama in a 1-1 draw, then smashed a hat-trick against the Cayman Islands All Stars.

He tapped away an opener at the 20th minute, then tucked away additional goals at the 59th and 65th minutes, the last being a header.

Davis, also called 'Bongo Man', was also quite deadly at scoring with his head as well as his feet. He made a name for himself as a scorer at both club and national levels throughout the '80s and '90s, mainly.

A number of forwards have promised much with high-scoring tallies in club competition, but few have advanced their scoring talent when promoted to the national team.

Prior to Thursday night's game, part of the Jamaica team's build-up for the Gold Cup, Hodges had said despite scoring his first international goal against Panama, "right now there's no space to get comfortable. I just have to keep working hard and stay focused, remain professional and try to get a spot in the team for the Gold Cup."

Tomorrow, he gets another opportunity to strengthen that objective when Jamaica tackle the Cayman Islands senior team in a friendly international at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex at 7 p.m. It's a safe bet that the 24-year-old Hodges will be shooting to add to his growing reputation.

- Audley Boyd