the worst run of any team in the Premier Division.

The Zebras' form marks a sharp turnaround for a club that some thought were capable of winning the Premier title in their first season back in the top division.

After an unbeaten run through eight league games, they have embarked on a downward spiral, culminating with Sunday's shock loss to First Division Social Club. That made it six defeats in seven outings since mid-December.

And while coach Sammy Swan insisted they created enough chances to have easily won Sunday's match, Social Club rode their luck to record a memorable victory.

PHC's poor run began on December 12 when Wolves ended their unbeaten streak.

"I don't think we're playing that bad, if anybody saw Sunday's game we definitely should have won that,'' said Swan. "We didn't play bad the other day against Town or Village either. Teams are gunning for us, it's payback time.

"I keep telling the players that it's harder when you are on top to stay there. We need to get a victory to get ourselves going again.'' From a four-point lead over Christmas when they were the in-form team in the Dudley Eve, PHC now find themselves two points behind new leaders North Village, one of the sides to avenge an earlier loss to the Zebras.

And a glance down the PHC aiming to stop the rot tables shows that there isn't much in the way of points between PHC and the relegation zone. With three teams dropping into the First Division next season and only seven points separating PHC from ninth-placed Boulevard, no team are free of relegation worries just yet.

PHC meet Boulevard in a must-win match on Sunday and Swan admitted it was back to the drawing board as they try to end the slump.

"They should have done it on Sunday,'' said Swan of the Social Club match when a host of chances were missed.

If PHC were having trouble scoring on Sunday, certainly North Village, the team who replaced them at the top of the table, could have given them a few goals. The Red Devils romped to the biggest win of the round when they blasted bottom team St. David's 10-2.

Islanders manager Kenneth Bascome, who promised over Christmas that St.

David's would put up a fight to survive, now accepts that the odds are against his team closing the 12 points between them and the team above, Boulevard. St.

David's have to win six of their last seven games to have any chance of climbing out of the relegation zone.

"I think it's going to be very difficult to survive now,'' Bascome conceded.

"This is the first game all season that we've scored two goals.'' St. David's were out of the contest after the first three goals went in.

Village turned a 4-0 lead at the half into a 10-2 rout as the home team lost all will to fight.

"The first three goals in particular were gifts and that took the heart out of them,'' said Bascome. "I don't think they've gotten in the mode that once they let in a goal it's all downhill, but once we give up a second goal they do lose heart.'' St. David's have something to play for in their remaining games, even if it's just pride and getting that first victory.

"We realised it was going to be difficult but a few results went against us,'' said the manager, who is hoping that coach Eugene Crockwell, along with the bulk of his players, will stay with the team should they be relegated.

"We've got a nice young team and hopefully next year we can come back with a new focus. Hopefully the young people of St. David's will take pride in representing their community.'' Added Bascome: "Now the younger guys are showing interest in the team.

Personally I hope Mr Crockwell doesn't pack it in. I've tried to make him understand it's not what he's doing because in many games, if we had put our chances away, the games would have been completely different.

"When you don't take your opportunities they come back to haunt you.''