Youth Milan’s woes continued while leaders Barbados Defence Force (BDF) registered another victory and champions Weymouth Wales returned to winning ways when Digicel Premier League football continued at the Wildey AstroTurf on Sunday.
In the opening match, Youth Milan, still searching for their first victory, put up a great deal of resistance before succumbing 1-2 to DirecTV Paradise.
The BDF then moved to 17 points, three clear of second place Claytons Kola Tonic Notre Dame with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Cosmos thanks to goals from Rashad Jules (7th minute), Raheim Sargeant (39th) and substitute Mario Williams (90+3).
Weymouth Wales, piloted by a hat-trick from Dwayne Stanford, trounced Families First St John Sonnets 4-1, their sixth straight defeat.
After a goalless first half, coach/player Kent Hall opened the scoring for Paradise in the 68th minute but Damien “Duffy” Edwards equalized in the 74th minute with his first goal for Youth Milan after switching from Cosmos this season.
Striker Armando Lashley ended a four-match goal drought after a brace in his team’s season opener against St John Sonnets on February 28, with the game winner in the 77th minute.
Milan’s cause wasn’t helped as their long-serving captain Norman Forde, after enduring severe back pains, collapsed on the field just before the end and had to be stretchered off and taken away for medical treatment.
BDF wasted little time in stamping their authority over Cosmos as Jules gave them an early 1-0 lead, hitting past goalkeeper Richard Corbin after Mario Harte intelligently played a free kick to him.
Midfielder Sargeant gave BDF a 2-0 half-time lead but Cosmos, with Corbin thwarting the efforts of Harte, only conceded a goal again in the third minute of injury time as Williams capitalized on a defensive error to slot home.
Sonnets surprised Wales when they scored their first goal of the season in the 38th minute as Jason King ran on to a through ball, and confidently shot past goalkeeper Bentley Springer.
Wales equalized six minutes into the second half after young striker Kemar Headley waltzed through Sonnets’ defence and played a delightful ball to Stanford, who superbly flicked it into the far corner of the net to the left of stand-in goalkeeper Tyson Mullins.
Jabar Greene made it 2-1 in the 58th, sliding in at the back post, to nail a left side cross from Carl Joseph that eluded Stanford.
Two minutes later, in an almost carbon copy of the previous goal, Greene played the ball across Sonnets’ goalmouth and Stanford sneaked in at far post to tuck home the opportunity.
Whereas Headley was unlucky to have another shot blocked by Mullins and the ball was cleared on the goalline by defender Ken Harewood, Stanford completed his treble in the 84th minute. He kept control of a loose ball and as both Mullins and Harewood retreated, he calmly placed the ball between them.
