North Village have been boosted by the return of star forward Jonté Smith for the opening match Premier Division under floodlights at Bernard Park tonight (8pm).

Smith, who scored 13 league goals and found the target 17 times in all competitions for his childhood club last season, was given time off after a gruelling summer of cricket but will return to the starting line-up for the game against Devonshire Colts.

The 2024-25 MVP skipped the Dudley Eve Trophy group matches, with his absence keenly felt by Village, who missed out on progression to the semi-finals.

Village coach Calvin “Patches” Dill is delighted to have Smith available, especially as forward Jai Bean is off island for work commitments.

“We’ve got Jonté Smith back now as he was just coming from cricket and we give the guys a rest when they’re playing two sports,” Dill told The Royal Gazette.

“We have everybody back besides Jai Bean, who is away with his job. Him and Jaizel Smith-DeShields work for Belco and they have gone overseas for some training, so we won’t have them until Christmas.”

With this the first league game under lights at the venue, the encounter will be preceded by festivities to officially mark the completion of the floodlights installation at Bernard Park.

“It’s the first league game at North Village under the floodlights and the boys are looking forward to a good game,” Dill said.

“We are looking to play well for the full 90 minutes and look at what we can take out of it, which hopefully is a victory for us.

“We know Colts are going to be a hard team and we know they picked up some new players. They’re playing Village at home and I know how Ray Jones thinks, so we just have to be prepared for whatever they bring.

“Because everybody wants to beat the champions, it’s so important that we stay focused and complete the task at hand. We want to maintain the same focus for the 18 games and retain our trophy.”

Jones, whose side finished sixth last season, has been working on getting his players in the right frame of mind for what could be a hostile reception if Village fans come out in their numbers.

“Our preparations have been pretty good, the boys have been committed to preseason training and we’re looking forward to the opening game,” the Colts coach said.

“I believe there’s going to be a ceremony for the first league game under the lights, so we’re just trying to prepare the boys mentally for that atmosphere.

“We’re looking to get off to a good start. Village have been a challenge for us in the past and we haven't had any success against them over the last few years, so we’ll see if we can get a result this time around.”

Central defender Jorj Dublin did not feature for Colts in the Dudley Eve Trophy as he continued his recovery from a hamstring injury picked up towards the end of last season.

“We are hoping to have Jorj Dublin in the line-up,” Jones said.

“He came through our training session on Wednesday pretty good. We've been cautious with him in preseason and that’s why you didn't see him in the Dudley Eve, just to make sure that his hamstring is 100 per cent healed.”

Both sides bolstered their squads during the off-season. Dill strengthened his double-winning side by bringing in Jordan Outerbridge, Chekai Caisey, Tahki Tucker, Pierre Smith, Knory Scott and Keiuno Cann.

In an effort to reinforce their forward options, Colts recruited Senoj Mitchell, Zuhri Burgess, Jomei Bean-Lindo, Jahzardae Samuels, Mateo Isaac, Jalen Commissiong and Diego Richardson, who has gone back to school overseas.

“We did a good assessment during the off-season to see where we need to strengthen,” Jones said.

“We brought in a few faces to help us in the forward line. Hopefully, we can have a better conversion rate with the chances that we create.

“The players have been committed to training, but the proof will be in the pudding in the opening match.”

Two former Village presidents, Rudolph “Buddy” Hollis and Shervin Dill will be honoured during the pre-match ceremony.

Dill was the club’s leader during the construction phase of the lighting project, while Hollis was instrumental in securing the existing field space at Bernard Park in November 1991.

Also to be recognised is Stephen “PJ” Coddington, who assisted the club in getting the two units that are now known as the Butterfield & Vallis Education Centre, and Mark Wade, the Bermuda Football Association president who heads the association’s infrastructure committee.

Village president DeVrae Tankard, who took over from Dill in June, is anticipating a carnival atmosphere at Bernard Park.

“We’re having an official ground opening before the first league match,” Tankard said.

“There will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony and blessing of the field. We are also going to recognise two past presidents that were instrumental in the development of Bernard Park.

“It’s going to be a fun, festive atmosphere. We’re going to start with a happy hour, followed by the ceremony then the match, with an after-party to cap it off.”