Robert Alexis got the decisive item as FC Santa Rosa battled to a 2-1 win over Malabar FC in the Eastern Football Association Premier Division on Saturday.
However, the encounter was more remember for its physical nature as four red and seven yellow cards were shown. Santa Rosa took the lead in the 13th minute through Michael Hospedales which it held until the half.
Two minutes after the restart, Alexis netted a second for the “Big Canons” to lead 2-0. But with seven minutes left in the match, Malabar which was reduced to eight players by then and Santa Rosa, ten, pulled a goal back via Casey Latapy to set up a tense finish.
Santa Rosa, managed to hold onto the win and climb to 16 points from seven matches, one ahead Valtrin United which strolled past Prisons 2-0 with goals from Keston Henry and Dwight Crichlow.
In the two other Premier Division matches, St John’s United slipped past Maloneu 2-1 while Upper Santa Cruz had a similar 2-1 triumph over fourth placed WASA.
La Horquetta SA moved into a one point lead at the top of the First Division after a 2-2 draw with Barataria Ball Players while previous joint-leader Boss FC fell 1-0 at third placed Creek.
EFA Results
Premier Division:
Santa Rosa 2 (Michael Hospedales 13th, Robert Alexis 47th) vs Malabar 1 (Casey Latapy 36th)
St John’s Utd 2 (Jeremie Stephens 27th, Jerry Lewis 59th) vs Maloney 1 (Nathan Lewis 36th)
Valtrin United 2 (Keston Henry 18th, Dwight Crichlow 41st pen) vs Prisons 0
Upper Santa Cruz 2 (Wendell Isaac 16th, 74th) vs WASA 1 (Romeno Rampersad 86th)
First Division:
Barataria 2 (Shendelle Jones 25th, 68th) vs La Horquetta S.A 2 (Keston Jones 38th, Dinelson Francis 66th)
La Horquetta 2 (Anslem Jackson 26th, 66th) vs Tunapuna Titans 2 (Rodney Ramjet 30th, Kevin Mango 66th)
Creek 1 (Anthony Applewhite 18th) vs Boss FC 0
Upcoming Fixture:
First Division Round 6:
Today (October 8):
Tunapuna Titans vs Pinto Utd, Constantine Park, 4.15pm
Boss vs Barataria Ball Players, Aranguez, 4.15pm
Creek vs La Horquetta XF, Arima, 4.15pm
Premiership Division Round 8:
Prison vs Carib, YTC Ground, 4.15pm
St John’s Utd vs Upper Santa Cruz, St John’s, 4.15pm
Malabar vs WASA, Larry Gomes Enclosure, 4.15pm
Joe Public vs Valtrin Utd, Marvin Lee Stadium,Macoya, 4.15pm
Santa Rosa vs Maloney, UTT Ground, 4.15pm
Standings
First Division
Team P W L D GF GA GD PTS
Santa Rosa 7 5 1 1 23 8 15 16
Valtrin Utd 6 5 1 0 19 7 12 15
Joe Public 5 4 1 1 17 7 10 13
WASA. 6 4 2 0 13 10 3 12
Maloney 7 2 3 2 16 15 1 8
Santa Cruz 7 2 5 0 11 13 12 5
Malabar 6 1 3 2 13 12 1 5
Carib 5 1 3 1 9 14 -5 4
Prisons 7 1 5 1 6 25 -19 4
St.Johns 7 1 3 3 13 19 -6 3
Premier Division
Team P W L D GF GA GD PTS
La Horquetta 5 2 1 2 10 10 0 8
Boss 4 2 1 1 13 12 2 7
Creek 4 2 2 0 10 6 4 6
Pinto Utd 3 1 0 2 12 7 5 5
La Horquetta XF 3 1 0 2 11 11 0 5
Titans 5 1 3 1 7 11 -4 4
Barataria B.P 4 1 2 1 5 12 -7 4