BELIZE CITY, Mon. Oct. 28, 2019– The playoff race is going down to the wire in the Premier League of Belize (PLB) 2019-2020 Opening Season, as Wagiya SC of Dangriga kept their slim playoff hopes alive with an impressive comeback win against formerly undefeated Bandits Sport, allowing Verdes FC to once again claim the top spot in the standings. With only 2 regular season weeks remaining, 4 teams are still in the hunt for 2 available playoff spots; both Verdes and Bandits are already playoff bound.
Week 12 had 2 games scheduled for Saturday night and 2 for Sunday afternoon.
At the M.A. Stadium in Independence on Saturday night, October 26, Altitude FC defended their turf with a 2-0 win over BDF FC, who were for the second consecutive week without their head coach, Jerome Serano, leading striker, Jesse August, and starting goalkeeper, Charles Tillett, all representing Belize in Costa Rica with the National U-18 squad. Altitude got a goal in each half from Miguel Garcia (34’ & 90’), and have passed BDF in the standings. (See standings below.) A couple weeks ago, BDF’s chances looked very good; now they are in an uphill battle to grab a playoff berth. The other Saturday night game was a default win for San Pedro Pirates FC, as FF Valley Pride failed to make an appearance for their scheduled game; and the league, like Concacaf, is not accepting their excuses.
On Sunday afternoon at the Norman Broaster Stadium, it looked like target practice for home standing Verdes FC, who shared the scoring among 7 different players in a 7-1 trouncing of Placencia Assassins FC. Netting 1 apiece for now league leading Verdes were Edwin Bernal (14’), Denmark Casey (29’), Jerome Jones (34’), Krisean Lopez (66’), Elroy Smith (76’), Desmond Wade (77’) and Jordy Polanco (90+1’); while the lone goal for Placencia was by Dion Moguel (36’). Meanwhile, at the Carl Ramos Stadium in Dangriga, after a scoreless first half, Bandits SC took the lead on an early second half strike from Roberto Silva de Lima (55’); but a subsequent brace from Gilroy “Bredda” Thurton (70’ & 84’) powered Wagiya to a desperately needed 2-1 victory. The win keeps Wagiya’s playoff hopes alive.
Upcoming Week 13 games:
Saturday, November 2
8:00 p.m. – Bandits Sport vs Verdes FC – Isidoro Beaton Stadium
Sunday, November 3
3:30 p.m. – Placencia Assassins FC vs Wagiya Sporting Club – Placencia Football Field
4:00 p.m. – FF Valley Pride FC vs Altitude FC – Carl Ramos Stadium
4:00 p.m. – BDF FC vs San Pedro Pirates FC – MCC Grounds
Outlook to final week of regular season, Week 14, November 9-10: San Pedro hosts Wagiya; Altitude hosts Verdes; Placencia hosts BDF; and Valley Pride hosts Bandits.