SANTA CRUZ, St Elizabeth — The Charley’s JB Rum/St Elizabeth Major League competition concludes today with Black Star FC facing an uphill task to retain their title.

The Black River-based side enter their second leg final against Appleton Estate needing at least a 4-0 victory to claim their third successive championship.

Match time is 3:00 pm at the St Elizabeth Technical High School in Santa Cruz.

The winner on aggregate will represent St Elizabeth in the South Central Confederation Super League play-offs. And, with a 3-0 cushion from the first leg, mid-season champions Appleton will feel that their name is already on that list.

That belief is reinforced by the fact that there is nothing in the previous meetings between these sides which suggests that Black Star are capable of staging one of those memorable football comebacks.

In three encounters leading up to this finale, Black Star suffered some comprehensive defeats to Appleton — losing 4-0, 3-1 and 3-0 — for a combine scoreline of 10-1.

And with just 90 minutes of action guaranteed today, the south-west St Elizabeth side now require the confidence of Hercules, plus the tactical acumen of the wily old fox, to overhaul this deficit and re-ignite their bid for Premier League promotion.