AC Port of Spain and Defence Force maintained their top two positions with dominant wins on matchday 18 in the TT Premier Football League on Sunday.
League leaders AC Port of Spain hammered cellar-placed Cunupia FC 4-0 at Larry Gomes Stadium in Malabar to keep their narrow two-point lead ahead of the persistent Defence Force.
Sedale Mclean opened the scoring in the 35th minute for the "town boys," who held their advantage until the break. The match was headed for a nervy finish when AC Port of Spain turned on the heat and fired three more past Cunupia FC goalkeeper Jon-Pierre David.
John-Paul Rochford (85th), Robert Primus (87th) and Duane Muckette (92nd) all got their names on the scoresheet during the late flurry.
The win for AC Port of Spain propelled them to 48 points; two points ahead of Defence Force, after 18 matches. So far, they’ve won 16 and lost two.
At Manny Ramjohn Stadium in Marabella, Defence Force took no prisoners and eased past W Connection with a 3-0 triumph.
After a goalless first half, Defence Force opened the scoring one minute into the second period after Reon Moore headed across the penalty box to find the club’s top goal scorer, Brent Sam, who headed past W Connection custodian Denzil Smith.
Two minutes later, Dwight Quintero fired a close-range shot which Smith parried into the path of Moore, who made no mistake finding the back of the net.
Defence Force dominated for the remainder of the game and eventual man of the match Justin Sadoo capped off a strong performance by rifling home in the 77th minute.
The Teteron Boys finished with 21 shots, 14 on target, while W Connection found the going tough and could only get in six shots, none finding the target.
Coach of the victorious team Hutson Charles said despite them holding the majority of possession in the first half, they could have done better. The halftime talk, he said, did the job.
“I thought we didn’t have any intensity at all. At halftime, I told them all they had to do was lift the intensity a little bit. As soon as they did that, we got the result.
“The guys needed a bit more composure. They got a lot of balls that they could have crossed and picked out players,” he said.
Charles said even though they were good defensively to keep out the Savonetta Boys, there’s still some work to be done.
“The last couple games we played, defensively we’ve been solid. I have a lot of confidence in our guys defensively. but we still have a lot of work to do offensively.”
After hearing the result of AC Port of Spain’s match, Charles replied, “It’s no problem. Let them continue because they still have to play us. Who knows? It could be a final on the last game."
Additionally, up to press time, Police FC held a 2-0 lead over third-placed Club Sando at Police Barracks in St James after a late start owing to a soggy outfield. The San Juan Jabloteh versus Caledonia AIA meeting was postponed.
Also after press time on Sunday, hosts Point Fortin Civic Centre were locked in battle with Central FC at Mahaica Sports Complex while Terminix La Horquetta Rangers also hosted Prison Service FC at La Horquetta Recreation Ground.