The men have been separated from the boys and the stage set for what promises to be a thrilling climax to the 2003-04 soccer season as the last two pieces of silverware go up for grabs today and tomorrow at National Sports Centre.

While North Village and Somerset Eagles will resume their quest for the Friendship Trophy tonight, most of the attention will be focused on tomorrow?s FA Cup final featuring the Island?s two top teams Dandy Town and Devonshire Cougars.

The first Friendship contest between Village and Eagles was abandoned after 19 minutes when a vicious battle involving machetes, swords, a plank of wood and concrete blocks broke out among a group of men on the southern end of Wellington Oval, spilling onto the pitch and forcing referee Lyndon Raynor to bring play to a premature end.

Tonight?s replay will be preceded by the Under-17 KO Cup final between North Village and St.George?s.

Cougars, meanwhile, still seek a maiden FA Cup triumph while Hornets will attempt to put an end to a 17-year cup drought. Town last hoisted the FA Cup in 1986-87, defeating PHC 1-0 in a replay. Since then they have appeared in five finals ? the last two seasons ago ? but have repeatedly failed to come up with the goods.

?We are just trying not to leave any stone unturned,? declared Town coach Devar Boyles. ?They (Cougars) are a very dangerous opponent. We have to keep an eye on some of the things they try to do and try to nullify them as best we can and also try to give them some offensive headaches to think about. But we know that with a good performance we stand a good chance of winning. We just hope on the day our performance warrants us being successful.?

Boyles also has another incentive to win.

?I have never won the FA Cup and so on Sunday everything will have to be perfect,? he added. ?And we are trying to make it as perfect as possible in view of being successful on the day.?

Cougars, on the other hand, have only appeared in two previous finals, losing out to Somerset Trojans and Vasco da Gama on both occasions. The big cats also lost 3-0 against Village last November on the ?carpet? in the Martonmere Cup final.

?We?ve made a few trips to the carpet but never won. But now we have a team capable of making history and we have to believe in ourselves in order to overcome any obstacles before us.

?But everyone is looking forward to Sunday and the size of the pitch could play to our advantage. The more space Packy (Raymond Beach) and Heys (Heys Wolfe) have the better,? Cougars player/coach Shawn Smith told earlier this week.

But given Town are riding high after clinching the league championship last week, Hornets enter this clash as slight favourites over a Cougars side who haven?t savoured any glory since 2001 and have seemingly become accustomed to wearing the bridesmaids? tag.

Both teams possess potent attacks as shown by their scoring tallies in league play. Town cracked home a total of 32 league goals while Cougars erupted for a league best 36. Hornets handed Cougars a 3-0 loss during the two teams? previous meeting early last month at the Den.

Expected to lead from the front for Hornets is the Smith duo of Carlos ? the sole survivor of Town?s 1986-87 cup winning team ? and Khano, a leading candidate for this season?s Most Valuable Player Award.

However, in Wolfe and Beach, Cougars have plenty of firepower in their arsenal.

The teams ? meeting for the first time in a major cup final ? can ill-afford to allow the likes of Carlos and Khano Smith and Wolfe and Beach to roam freely, while fitness will also have a huge say in terms of just who walks away with the coveted prize and basks in the glory of a Monday motorcade through the Island.

While Hornets skipper Lionel Furbert, Maurice Lowe, Kingsley Mundy and David Lawler have been solid this season and should again prove a hard nut to crack for the Cougars? front runners, Devonshire club will be hoping 2001 Martonmere Cup hero Mark Smith can rediscover that form and deliver the goods along with skipper Kwame Steede and midfield schemers Domico Coddington and Kori Goddard.

Cougars remain injury free. But the same might not be said for Hornets who were without the services of first string ?keeper Jason Smith and Randy Swan ? who has come on in leaps and bounds this season ? in last week?s league title clincher against Eagles, both through injury.

Tomorrow?s FA Cup clash will be preceded by the Women?s FA Cup Final ? celebrating its tenth anniversary ? between League and Konica Cup champions PHC and multiple cup winners Rude Girls.