Defending Premier Division champions North Village will be playing for local pride when they kick off a three match series against Jamaica at the National Sports Centre on Thursday.

Given a new lease of life, Village have turned their fortunes around after a slow start to the season to take over at the summit of the Premier Division.

Scott Morton's men won both of their games in hand and lead the way by virtue of a superior goal difference over Devonshire Colts.

Buoyed by the holiday arrivals of overseas college players Ralph Bean Jr. and Jemieko Jennings, Morton has the kind of difficult decisions coaches love - trying to select from a star-studded roster which now also includes top poacher Clay Smith, Keith Jennings and Marlon Dill, all reported to be back in training yesterday.

The spacious confines at the National Sports Centre should also be an ideal setting for Village to showcase their flamboyant passing game against the Jamaicans.

"I am really looking forward to the occasion to test my players at another level - physically, mentally and tactically," Morton said. "I think that it would be great if we can carry this momentum against Jamaica, especially at the National Sports Centre where the pitch is more conducive to our style of play."

Morton said it was an honour to play against the Caribbean side - who are expected to arrive today - and said the onus was on his team to represent both themselves and Bermuda to the best of their ability.

"The number one motivating factor will be to look at the match itself as representing the Dudley Eve tournament and go out there and play in honour of that," he said. "Secondly, it would also be good to go out there and perform against a higher calibre team and come away with a winning result."

Victory would also help Village continue their resurgence.

"We would have an even more positive attitude going into the second half (of the season) knowing that we can rise to the occasion against an Olympic team that is currently preparing for important international matches," Morton added.

Apart from the absence of defender Jawan Thomas (ligaments), Village will be at full strength.

"Clay comes back tomorrow (today) and Keith Jennings has regained his health. Marlon Dill is also back from abroad," added the coach.

Despite Village's recent return to form, Morton is fully aware that there is still a long road yet to travel if they are to emulate their success of last year, and he has warned his troops not to become complacent entering such a crucial stage of the season.

"No two years are alike," he explained. "Just because we are coming into form at the same time as we did last season doesn't mean that we will be able to duplicate last season.

"We still have to perform on the day and take it one day at a time and build on the momentum that we have going in our favour."

Village and Jamaica will square off at 3 p.m. on Thursday at the National Sports Centre, while Martonmere Cup champions Devonshire Colts will get their opportunity to shine against the visitors at the same venue on Sunday, December 29.

A Bermuda select will then close out the tour on New Year's Day in a match played in the late Dudley Eve's memory, also at the Sports Centre.

Prospect/Fire defeated Wolves Pack 8-5 during a Commercial B Division affair at Prospect on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the Commercial A Division match between Robin Hood and North Village Rams failed to get underway at Bernard Park.