IT IS CATCHING UP
Speculation is rife as to which two footballers have tested positive for dope ahead of last month's return World Cup match against Dominica.
The National Anti-Doping Commission (NADC) is to have a hearing with the players before publicly revealing their identity.
Kick-off time today is at 4 p.m. with Mpact Haggatt Hall facing Paradise, followed by a 6 p.m. showdown between Gall Hill and Claytons Kola Tonic Notre Dame, always a crowd-pulling encounter because of the traditional Christ Church vs St Michael soccer rivalry.
The feature match at 8 p.m. will be a battle between last year's two champion teams, with Premiership title-holders Barbados Defence Force (BDF) opposing Knock-out kings Mackeson Brittons Hill.
In the opening game Paradise's new striker Mustaffa Haqq, who scored both goals in his team's 2-0 win against Youth Milan, can expect a tough time from Haggatt Hall's defenders Dean Francois, Sherlock Dowden, Ryan Cox and Travis Benjamin as he tries to score against his former teammates.
At the other end, Winston Pompey, Karl "Ziggy" Cole and Aubrey Gibson will lead Haggatt Hall's attack in trying to penetrate the defence of four-time champions Paradise, who won the League title in 1989, 1996, 2001 and 2003, but were demoted last season.
Gall Hill, with just two titles in 1988 and 1994, are coming off last Sunday's 1-0 Knock-out victory over Brittons Hills and will be eager to capitalise on a Notre Dame team which need to lift their standard after draws with Tudor Bridge, Youth Milan and Technico.
Dames hungry
The Dames won four straight Premiership titles from 1997 to 2000 and added another three in 2002, 2004 and 2005, but are still hungry for more silverware.
Barbados captain Norman Forde, after resting a groin strain for the past two weeks, should be suiting up along with Jeffrey Williams and John Hawkesworth in midfield as they try to upstage Gall Hill's Andrew Butcher, Renaldo Marquez and Andre Phillips.
The versatile Carlos Nicholls has returned to the Gall Hill team after dislocating his shoulder and could be used in an attacking midfield position or defence.
But all eyes will be on the wily Andrew Tudor, who can exploit the Dames' notable weak right wing-back position with his trademark overlapping runs or create goal-scoring chances with his free-kicks and corners on the left side.
Up front, the Dames have an experienced quartet of strikers in former national players Llewellyn Riley, Jerry Alexander, Ryan Lucas and Dwayne Gale to choose from as well as the speedy Deomaji Samuels.
Magical moves
Gall Hill's defence will be marshalled by Andre Daniel and Jamar Sargeant, while Dames' experienced trio Wayne Sobers, John Parris and Bryan Neblett will be wary of Ryan Griffith, Jason Goodridge and especially the skilful Sherwin Success, who is capable of producing magical moves.
In the feature match BDF, buoyed by their 2-0 conquest of Youth Milan last week when Mario Harte scored his maiden Premiership goal, will be wary of a backlash from Brittons Hill, who surrendered their Knock-out title by benching key players for missing practice.
Coach/player Gregory "Lalu" Goodridge, Walton Burrowes and Anthony Cumberbatch will be back in the starting line-up alongside Rondelle Vaughan and Luther Watson, and the partisan Brittons Hill fans will be expecting nothing less than a victory.
It is not easy to score against BDF even with Rohan Hall out injured, as the army football recruits have a reliable goalkeeper in Kerry Holder and solid defence with the likes of Jonathan Straker, Barry Skeete, Kevin Padmore and Jermaine Caesar.
Jamar Watson has taken over as midfield engineer, while six-footer Greg Belle has showcased his goal-scoring ability in moving from defence to an attacking midfield position.