Brent Antoine netted a goal either side of half-time to give Spain Slappers a vital 2-0 victory over Trincity Nationals in a very combative Group B match in the Eddie Hart Football League (EHFL) at Eddie Hart Savannah (EHS) in Tacarigua last Wednesday night.
Trincity Nationals, who started the game at the top of the group with 12 points, eventually ended the contest with nine men.
First, they lost a player to a direct red card and then their goalkeeper, who reacted in an unsportsmanlike manner to the referee's decision.
But following the dismissals, Trincity, sensing that they needed at least a point to confirm their place in the round of 16, upped their game and applied pressure to the Slappers' defence and were denied a goal or two by the excellence of the winners' custodian.
He made a couple of daring saves late in the tight contest to keep their opponents at bay and secure the points for his club.
Nationals concluded the league phase with 12 points, temporarily holding on to second spot. Petit Bourg Youths (ten points) can overtake them if they beat Lopinot United in their final group game.
A win for Petit Bourg will put them on 13 points, one less than present leaders Slappers (14 points), who still have one game to play.
Trincity's recent setback increased Parliament's (six points) slim hopes of finishing second in the group on goal difference, if they win their last pair of matches by large margins and Lopinot stop Petit Bourg Youths or draw with them.
In the first game on Wednesday, Small Stars and Pacemakers played to a 2-2 draw in Group C.
In another game last week, Paradise FC and Bon Air FC played to an exciting 2-2 draw.
Both teams were given a standing ovation as they left the field, following the final blast of the referee's whistle.
Former skipper Abede "Piper" Hernandez and Gorean "Ratty" Highley netted for Bon Air, while Randy Ramcharran and Lorne Joseph hit the mark for Paradise .
Defending champions MAASH International's captain Stevon "Scrappy" Stoute continued his awesome goal-scoring form last week when he netted all five items in a 5-0 thumping of Toyota Young Lions in Group A.
The big haul by Stoute pushed his goal tally to 11 in four games.