The National Track and Field Centre at Leonora will come alive tonight when Pouderoyen battle Den Amstel in the West Demerara derby of the 2nd Annual Petra Organization/Limacol Football Championship from 21:00hrs.
A contest which is often explosive and always physical, the last meeting of the teams resulted in a penalty shootout victory for Dem Amstel in January 2016. In terms of form, both teams are coming off contrasting losses in their previous competitive matches.
However, Den Amstel appear to be the more settled unit of the two sides and will start as the marginal favourite to clinch the vital three points. Offensively, Kevaughn Ward, Travis Hilliman, Andre Hector and Gavin Graham provide a formidable threat. On the defensive end, Den Amstel feature the likes of custodian Ryan Hunte, Prince Payne and Michael Morris.
For Pouderoyen, revenge will be the focus following their aforementioned showdown. Tasked with finding the back of the net for the Travis Bess coached side are Morgan Denny, Dwayne St. Kitts, Esan Nelson, Kwesi Alleyne, Denzil Boyce, as well as siblings Marvin and Kevin Frank.
From the defensive perspective, Pouderoyen will call on the likes of Sherwin Bernard, Keron Boyce, Kevin Humphrey, Ashley Harding, and Alex Andrews to withstand the assaults of their arch enemy.
The opening fixture at 18:30hrs will pit Linden against West Demerara, then Eagles United led by the youthful quartet of Yonnick Simon, Allan Healey, Omar Brewley and Kendolph Lewis, will lock horns with Uitvlugt Warriors and their quintet of Lerone Jacobs, siblings Keyon and Kevin Duke, Jamal Petty and Daniel Floyd.
Meanwhile, the first round of group fixtures will conclude on January 28th at the Georgetown Football Club (GFC) ground, Bourda. Initially scheduled for the Mackenzie Sports Club (MSC) ground, the opening fixture at 18:30hrs will pit the Linden unit Winners Connection against East Bank giants Grove Hi-Tech.
The event is initially being contested on a round-robin basis, with the top two finishers in each group progressing to the quarterfinal round.
Group-A consists of Milerock, Winners Connection, Grove Hi-Tech and Northern Rangers whilst group-B features Western Tigers, Uitvlugt, Eagles and NA United.
Group-C comprises Santos, Pouderoyen, Den Amstel and Ann’s Grove while group-D contains Guyana Police Force (GPF), Riddim Squad, Camptown and Mahaica Determinators.
