Come rain or shine it’s full on league action for Central’s fans
Chelsea, Spurs are on the back foot
DESPITE the wet and rainy weather East London Central Local Football Association will continue with their First Division and Premier league fixtures this weekend at North End.
The 2017 Premier league championsRiverside face arguably one of their biggest tests in the second round when they cross swords with the Noel Mein cup champions Buffalo City Sports Academy tomorrow at 3.30pm in the pick of this weekend’s fixtures.
Buffalo City Sports Academy’s travails in the transfer market this season has seen them scoop a number of star-studded players who were members of the 2014 Parkside Sporting dream squad that won a record eight Premier trophies over a two-year period before their demise in 2016.
Players such as striker Angel Snyman, defender Jezuane Diedricks and midfielder Melvin King were pivotal in Sports Academy winning their maiden trophy this season – the Noel Mein Cup.
Their highly regarded club coach Herman Jones has however not been satisfied with his club’s league form as he bids to establish his side as a top-flight force.
Riverside have peaked at the right time and with their predator striker Sheldon Stevens finding the back of the net with relative ease in recent games the “Blue Train” will take some stopping.
The three other Premier league title contenders, Seagulls, Star of India and the defending champions Swaraj face sides this weekend that are struggling to find any sort of form and playing rhythm in the league.
Third-placed Stars entertain Parkside United at 2pm and secondplaced
WITH the transfer window due to close in two weeks, the pressure is mounting on Premier League clubs to get their business done in time and not everyone is enjoying the process. Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has grumbled about the champions’ failure to meet his transfer expectations, Tottenham have yet to make a single signing and Liverpool are in a tense stand-off with Philippe Coutinho after Barcelona’s attempt to land the Reds star. Despite spending £130-million (R2.2-billion) on Alvaro Morata, Antonio Rudiger and Tiemoue Bakayoko since masterminding Chelsea’s title triumph, Conte remains miffed Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho won the race for Romelu Lukaku, while Leonardo Bonucci and Alex Sandro also eluded him. Those miscues, combined with the departures of Nemanja Matic, John Terry and Nathan Ake, have left Chelsea short of quality understudies. Conte, who has also cast striker Diego Costa into exile, heads into tomorrow’s clash at Tottenham without Gary Cahill and Cesc Fabregas Seagulls host Peace at 12.30pm.
At the start of the season CC Lloydbased Brothers of Peace were firing on all cylinders and were the team to Brothers of beat as they were on top of their game with players such as striker Bradley Mentoor and midfielder Lusanda Mzayifane, the chief architects.
However they have capitulated in bizarre fashion, suffering four con- secutive defeats and conceding 16 goals since their last win against Prides in June.
Parkside United have also hit a purple patch suffering three consecutive defeats and conceding 12 goals in the process.
Defending champions Swaraj face relegation-threatened Conquerors today at 3.30pm.
Conquerors picked up a moraleboosting 3-0 win against Parkside United last weekend in their fight to avoid relegation while Swaraj have been plagued with on-field player discipline, picking up four red cards in as many weeks even though they have remained on the winning trail and in touch with the front-runners.
Back among the elite for the first time in five years after finishing second in the First Division promotional league last season, Saints did not have to wait long for an indication of just how tough it will be to retain that long-prized Premier status.
They are at the bottom of the log and face a must-win encounter against second from bottom Napoli at 2pm – a fixture billed as a relegation dogfight for either side.
Saints player-coach Ronaldo Snyman was forthright about his team’s objective. “Our aim is to make sure we are in the Premier league come the following season.”
In action in midweek, Prides beat Atlantic Spurs’s 2-0, while First Division outcomes saw Imonti Christian Centre beat Real Dukashe 1-0, secondCentral United went down 3-1 to K-Way; and Prides U20 drew 0-0 with Alphen Warriors.
Fixtures today, Brothers of Peace U20 v Atlantic Spurs U20 at 11am; Riverside U20 v FC East London at 12.30pm; and tomorrow, Diaroma United play Leeds United at 11am.