ONE team needs to wake up, while the other has its eyes shut in prayer for miracles.

That’s the contending scenarios facing leaders Tivoli Gardens and Harbour View following their 0-0 draw in the Digicel Premier League (DPL) at Compound on Sunday.

Tivoli Gardens, who are well on their way to capturing the DPL title, saw their nine-point lead reduced to seven by Boys’ Town.

Tivoli Gardens are on 59 points with seven games remaining, with Boys’ Town on 52, while champion Harbour View are 12 points back on 47 in third spot.

Tivoli coach, Glendon ‘Admiral’ Bailey, said his team got complacent after acquiring three extra points from a 0-1 loss to a Humble Lion team that used an ineligible player.

Said Bailey: “Maybe with this hard game today (Sunday) and just coming away with a point might just wake them up to let them know that they haven’t accomplished anything yet.”

Both teams battled hard for the win, and in the end, Harbour View’s Marcelino Blackburn and Tivoli’s Navion Boyd both were dismissed.

Blackburn received two yellow cards in the 44th and 57th minutes, and picked up his first for trying a “Hand of God” stunt and then for a foul 13 minutes later.

The enigmatic Boyd, then threw away his team’s one-man advantage by striking Nicholas Beckett in retaliation after he was fouled in the 68th minute.

In the end, both teams had to settle for a share of the points.

For Harbour View, only prayers will help as they languished 12 points behind the leader and five points adrift of second-placed Boys’ Town.

Their chances of retaining title is even more remote as they not only have to overhaul Tivoli, but Boys’ Town as well, and it is very unlikely that both leaders will falter that badly.

Their coach, Donovan Hayles, remains optimistic that Tivoli will not get the required nine points from seven games to thwart his challenge.

“I believe we are still in it because mathematically we can get there. We can win this competition… we have to make sure we don’t drop points from here on and keep our fingers crossed that the leaders drop points… but definitely we are not giving up the ghost,” said Hayles.

And Sunday’s goalless result did nothing to aid the cause. “I am not satisfied with one point, we needed to get all three points… the team played with that urgency and purpose like it was a cup final where we had to win the game, but unfortunately we did not succeed,” he said.

Teams:

Tivoli Gardens — Edsel Scott, Jameel Thompson, Lennox Wright, Rupert Murray, Kemar Flemmings, Damion Gordon (Nackwayne Parchment 78th), Kevin Blackford (Owen Powell 57th), Raymond Williamson, Shawn McKoy, Roland Dean, Navion Boyd.

Subs not used: Leon Gordon, Jerry Walters, Marco McDonald, Jeffrey Grant, Valentine Gardener.

Booked: Williamson (39th), Murray (84th), Boyd (ejected 68th)

Harbour View — Michaud Barrett, Dicoy Williams, Montrose Phinn, Christopher Harvey, Kimorlee Brissett, Nicholas Beckett, Marcelino Blackburn, John Ross-Edwards, Jermaine Hue (Lennox Creary 90th), Fabian Taylor (Kemeel Wolfe 62nd), Jahmali Spence (Ranique Muir 70th).

Subs not used: Devon Haughton, Lamar Hodges, Fabian Campbell, Romario Campbell.

Booked: Harvey (25th), Blackburn (44th & 57th-ejected), Williams (80th), Hue (90th+)

Referee: Oneal Clayton

Assistant Referees: Ricardo Morgan, Stacy-Ann Greyson

Fourth Official: Cardella Samuels

Match Commissary: Garfield Robinson