Western Mass Pioneers ........ 1

Bermuda Hogges ................... 0

Dame fortune was not smiling so sweetly upon the Bermuda Hogges last night with Western Mass Pioneers stealing the points through a wicked deflection off Dennis Zuill.

The cruel blow came in the 38th minute against the run of play and although the Hogges rallied after the setback, bombarding the Pioneers goalmouth, they were unable to find the equaliser.

Skipper Kwame Steede, Damon Ming and man-of-the-match Sammy DeGraff were all thwarted by the heroics of the Pioneers keeper who ensured the Hogges were unable to follow up their impressive 1-0 victory against New Hampshire Phantoms at the weekend.

Co-owner Paul Scope believed the Hogges had delivered a better performance than they had against the Phantoms but without getting the "rub of the green" their play had deserved.

"We played well against a good side and to be fair we probably enjoyed the better of the possession ¿ but the goals just didn't come for us," said Scope.

"Their goal took a wicked deflected off Dennis Zuill and Timmy (Figureido) had had the shot covered, so that was a disappointment for us. But we didn't let our heads drop and at the end of the game the Pioneers coaching staff admitted that we had probably shaded the match.

"Their keeper had an outstanding game and pulled off three fantastic saves to deny Kwame (Steede), Damon (Ming) and Sammy (DeGraff)."

Scope singled out Sammy De Graff for special praise and said he believed his recent month's trial at Brazilian powerhouse Internacional appeared to have done wonders for his confidence.

"Sammy's come back from Brazil looking very sharp and ran the show last night. It appears his time in Brazil has done him the world of good and he was excellent in midfield for us," he added.

"He had to come off against the Phantoms at the weekend with a cramp and that was probably due to all the travelling he has been doing recently , but he recovered and was our man-of-the-match against Pioneers.

"It must be remembered Pioneers are a good side with a lot of South American talent and are probably disappointed that they haven't been challenging for the play-offs this season ¿ they finished top a couple of years ago.

"They had a crowd of about 2,000 at the Lusitano Stadium and we managed to keep them pretty quiet for most of the match."

Wing-back Jabrel Tucker had to be removed from the fray through injury and was replaced by Michael Parsons. Meanwhile Jared Peniston was ruled out before the game with a hamstring injury and will miss the remainder of the season.

Scope said Peniston's absence represented a major loss for the Hogges and described the midfielder's contribution this season as "outstanding". He said: "Jared received treatment from the New England Revolution's physio the day before the game but there was no way he would be ready as hamstring injuries can be very tricky.

"It's a shame he will miss the remainder of the season as he's been excellent this season and has shown his versatility playing in a number of positions and particularly impressed in the centre of midfield.

"But Clevon Hill came in and did a good job for us and that shows we have a bit of strength in depth in that department."

The Hogges are back in action on Friday night against Charlotte Eagles at Waddell High School, before taking on Wilmington Hammerheads at Legion Sports Complex on Sunday night.

Bermuda Hogges: T Figureido Richards Tucker (Parsons 45) Zuill Cox Shakir Hill Steede DeGraff Bean (Holder 65) Ming (Beach 65)

Man-of-the-match: Sammy DeGraff