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By Neto Baptiste
Attacking Saints will play in the Antigua and Barbuda Football Association (ABFA) top flight when the 2025/26 domestic season kicks off in October.
The All Saints men, who faced relegation following a dismal 2024/25 season, secured their place in the body’s Premier Division following a confident 5-1 trouncing of First Division’s Freeman’s Village Scorpions, when they met on Sunday at the FA Technical Center.
Shafeeq Joseph signalled United’s intentions early in the contest, putting his team ahead in only the third minute. The All Saints men went two-nil up just four minutes later when Joshua Samuel scored his first of two goals in the seventh minute.
Scorpions found a glimmer of hope via a Darius Hector strike in the 43rd minute to narrow Attacking Saints’ lead to just one heading into the interval.
The top flight contenders however, upped the tempo in the second half, scoring three unanswered goals to kill any hopes of a Scorpions comeback.
Samuel completed a brace in the 53rd to put Saints 3-1 up before Ellsworth Mack scored in the 58th minute to make it 4-1. Naique Merrick closed out the scoring in added time to put the icing on the cake for his team.
The game, which had been postponed several times, was crucial in deciding which of the two teams would play in the FA’s top flight for the upcoming season.
Attacking Saints FC and Freeman’s Village Scorpions were left in limbo following the postponement of the crucial playoffs fixture on May 1st when Scorpions failed to show for the clash. The Freeman’s Village men later claimed they had informed the FA of their unavailability due to several players having work commitments. The match had been postponed on at least two other occasions.
Attacking Saints were relegated to the playoffs after finishing fifth from bottom on the standings in the 2024/25 Premier Division while Scorpions ended their First Division campaign in third place, one position down from automatic promotion.
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