The 2005-06 league season doesn?t conclude until early next month. But Premier Division leaders North Village could be celebrating long before then.

With victory over whipping boys Ireland Rangers at Bernard Park on February 26, the Reds can clinch a seventh league championship and third in five seasons.

Under the leadership of Scott Morton, Village won back-to-back championships in the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons before the coveted title took up residence at nearby Dandy Town and Devonshire Cougars.

But needing only to take two points from remaining fixtures against Rangers and Somerset Trojans, Village are now firm favourites to hoist the crown on March 5 at Bernard Park.

Village?s steady ascent began last October after they were beaten 2-0 by Cougars at the Den in league play and denied a chance to defend their Martonmere Cup for an unprecedented third consecutive year when they lost to Trojans in the semi-final in extra time.

Since then Village have only lost once, last month?s Dudley Eve Champions Cup final against Cougars, and have by far been the league?s most consistent team.

And with consistency comes reward.

?Everyone has a lot of trust and understanding for each other and this is where I think the consistency comes into play,? said Village assistant coach Maceo Dill.

?And now that we have developed some sort of level of consistency it kind of lends itself to the position that we find ourselves in today.

?We have some of the better quality players at North Village. We had 15 players recently called to the national team which speaks volumes for our programme. We?ve always had a thriving youth programme with talented players coming through. Just take a look at youngsters such as Keishen Bean, Shane Hollis and Tyrell Burgess.?

Dill is himself a former Reds midfielder and assistant coach to both Morton and Kenny Thompson.

His own Premier Division career was cut short when he sustained a knee injury during his stay in college at Alabama A&M, playing alongside fellow Bermudians Richard Todd, Stanton Lewis and Corey Hill.

Although delighted with Sunday?s crucial win over Cougars, Dill warned against complacency.

?It?s not over yet and we still need two points in order to secure the title,? he added. ?The players feel very confident going into the next game although mathematically Somerset and Cougars can still win the title. But I also think our last victory has psychologically inflicted a blow on them that it (league title) is all over.?

Village play their final two matches of the season against Rangers and Trojans at home.

?We couldn?t have asked for better circumstances,? Dill added. ?And we certainly don?t intend to take anything for granted.?

The Reds have also qualified for a fourth Friendship Trophy final in six seasons. Village will take on Dandy Town on March 12 at the National Sports Centre in what will be a repeat of the 2004 Martonmere Cup final between the two clubs.

Village are also firmly on course to achieve the first triple crown championship haul since Vasco da Gama in 1997-98.

?We are in the position that we always wanted to be in at this stage of the season,? said Dill, son of Village president Shervin Dill. ?I actually would have liked to have played our next league match this weekend so that we could put the championship behind us.?

Instead Village, the defending FA Cup champions, take on Paget in the second round of the FA Cup on Sunday at White Hill Field.

Meanwhile, Village head coach Dwayne (Streaker) Adams has his sights on the triple crown haul of league, FA Cup and Friendship Trophy titles.

?We now have an opportunity to achieve something that hasn?t been achieved in some time,? Adams said. ?And in terms of playing as a unit I think we are peaking at the right time.?

Adams has also seen action on the pitch, deputising for the injured Zane Hendrickson who returned to the line-up last weekend.

?I just want the players to enjoy the game,? the former national team and United States League (USL) professional goalie added.

?We still have some business to tend to. We are in a good position, but we haven?t actually won the league yet.?

As for Sunday?s inspiring win, Adams said: ?It was good to get by Cougars because they have been in our faces for the entire season. They are a talented team and one which we respect.?