The National Association of Domino Bodies (NADB) league will pause at the semi-final stage today to make way for the Knockout tournament, and president Humbert Davis says players can expect the same intensity they have seen all season.

“We’re looking forward to another exciting evening of dominoes. Even though the league is on pause, the competitiveness and the camaraderie that we have seen throughout will continue in the Knockout. The players love this format because every game matters,” Davis told the Jamaica Observer.

Four matchups are set for today at the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ), starting at 6:30 pm. Each game will be played for one hour, with two rounds to be completed tonight. The final is scheduled for next week.

Today’s fixtures are National Housing Trust versus Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ), Jamaica Observer versus Covenant Insurance Brokers (CIB), Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth, and Information (MOESYI) versus BOJ, and Post and Telecommunications Department (PTD) versus GraceKennedy (GK) Money Services.

Davis said the short, one-hour format should produce fast, aggressive play.

“The one-hour games bring a different kind of pressure. You have to come out and play from the first hand. There’s no time to ease into it. I expect close games and I expect the crowd to enjoy it,” he stated.

Play resumes in the league two weeks time, but the last round of zone games produced some big scores.

In Zone 1, MOESYI beat NHT 86-61, while the Jamaica Observer got past GK Money Services 101-81.

In Zone 2, PAJ edged BOJ 88-83 and PTD held off CIB 74-71.

Davis said the results set up an interesting finish whenever the league returns.

“The league has been very competitive this year as the scores showed it. Any team can beat any team on the night, and that’s what we want. The Knockout now gives us a chance to crown a champion in a different format before we get back to the league semi-finals,” Davis ended.