Dandy Town Hornets will be looking to make further inroads towards an eighth Premier Division title when they face relegation battlers Devonshire Cougars at Devonshire Recreation Club tonight.

Town, who have a nine-point advantage over nearest rivals Robin Hood, are the firm favourites but can ill afford to take anything for granted against a Cougars that are made of sterner stuff these days.

Cougars are unbeaten in their previous three league matches, scoring ten goals without conceding, to suggest that Kwame Steede, the player-coach, has finally found a good balance between attack and defence.

Lamont Brangman, who came on as a substitute to score a maiden hat-trick in Cougars’s 5-0 quarter-final win over Young Men’s Social Club last weekend, could start as Cougars look to solidify their Premier Division status.

Striker Mark Steede is also expected to return to the line-up after missing last weekend’s cup tie because he was overseas.

Cougars have not lost in the league since their 2-0 defeat against Hamilton Parish last December and will certainly have their work cut against a powerful Town side further bolstered by the return of Damon Ming.

The experienced forward player sat out Town’s 5-1 FA Cup quarter-final drubbing of Boulevard through suspension after being sent off in a league fixture away to PHC Zebras the previous week.

Drewonde Bascome could also see action. The son of Andrew Bascome, the Bermuda coach, suffered respiratory problems in Town’s match against PHC and was taken to hospital where he was treated and released the same day. Bascome was an unused substitute for Town’s against Boulevard, as was Dominique Lambert, the striker, who has returned from injury.

Tonight’s match kicks off at 9pm and will be preceded by the First Division game involving mid-table Wolves and St David’s, which starts at 7pm.

In the remaining Premier Division matches to be played on Sunday, Hood travel to Wellington Oval to face last-placed Hamilton Parish, while Somerset Trojans, the defending champions, travel to Southampton Oval to take on ninth-placed Southampton Rangers.

Elsewhere, Boulevard host PHC at Police Field while North Village take on free-falling Devonshire Colts at Bernard Park.

Sunday’s remaining First Division matches pit leaders Somerset Eagles against X-Roads at White Hill Field, Flanagan’s Onions against Young Men’s Social Club at Goose Gosling’s Field, while BAA are away to St George’s Colts at Wellington Oval. Paget Lions face Ireland Island Rangers.