FIRST-ROUND champion Tivoli Gardens FC and second End-of-Round finalists Waterhouse will battle for second spot in in the feature Digicel Premier League (DPL) match at Drewsland this evening at 6:00.

Tivoli, with 41 points, are four points off leaders Harbour View, but only one ahead of third-placed Waterhouse, and both coaches are aiming for a win.

In other games today, Harbour View travel to Collie Smith Complex to face fourth-placed Boys’ Town at 3:00 pm; St George’s entertain Humble Lions at Lynch Park at 6:30 pm; Portmore play Arnett Gardens at Ferdie Neita Park 7:30; Sporting Central host Village United at Brancourt, and August Town tackle Rivoli United at UWI Bowl, both at 3:00 pm.

Waterhouse coach Geofrey Maxwell expressed disappointed at his team’s opening third-round draw with Rivoli, which saw them slipping one place in the standings, but he intends to take all three points against the league’s best attacking side.

“This is a very crucial game at this point in the championship… because we would like to go back into second and Tivoli would like to draw closer to Harbour View.

“This could be one of the most important games of the round in regard to the top three team… so we’re aiming to take the full three points off Tivoli,” Maxwell declared.

However, he believes his players will have to come out and show the commitment and desire if they hope to get the points from one of their main title rivals.

‘We have to show the hunger we had in the second round, but it’s in the players’ hands,” he said.

Tivoli’s coach Leworth Hyde is also eyeing a victory, despite playing away from home and says his team will go to Drewsland with confidence as they have proved they can do it after their 2-0 victory in the first round.

“We expect a very tough game playing away to a Waterhouse team, but we’re happy with how we started the third round and we can’t afford to slip up right now,” he said.

Hyde said although a win is the ultimate goal, leaving with a point would be a satisfactory result.

“We don’t want to lose the game, and that’s very important. If we draw we will be in front of them, but it is very important that we try and win this game,” he said.

At Collie Smith Complex, Boys’ Town will be looking to halt any further gaps between the front-runners and the trailing pack as a draw between Waterhouse and Tivoli could see Harbour View stretching their lead to six points.

Harbour View’s coach Donovan Hayles says whether they play at home or away, his team will be going for three points as they look to stay clear of the chasers.

“… Boys’ Town is a very tough team, especially playing at home, and at no time when we’re playing Boys’ Town… we can say it’s easy going, but we’re hoping that we’re on the winning end at the end of the game,” he said.

After failing to win their last three games in the second round, Boys’ Town started the second round with victory against bottom-of-the-table Village United (20 points).

And come this afternoon, they will be looking to stake their title credentials with a win against the leaders.

Meanwhile, Portmore United and Arnett Gardens meet in another crucial game at the other end of the table.

Both are languishing just above the relegation zone, with Arnett tied on 22 points with 11th-placed Humble Lions, while Portmore sit a point ahead.

The two teams will be gunning for nothing less than three points in an effort to try and finish in the top six this round.

At UWI, August Town will look to continue their impressive climb up the chart, but will have a tough opponent in Rivoli.

The Paul Young-coach August Town are on a four-match unbeaten run and will be confident of maintaining that streak.

However, Rivoli have made a reputation of being one of the toughest teams to beat in the league, and the hosts will find they are no exception.

At Lynch Park, home team St George’s will start favourites against Humble Lions. However, the visitors cannot be taken lightly as they boast a number of quality players that have recently been added to their roster.