After his side suffered their first defeat in three months when they lost to North Village in the league, Dandy Town captain Tomiko Goater declared that they have put that loss behind them as they prepare to face Paget in the FA Cup first round tonight.

Town had been cruising before they were brought down 2-0 by Village at Bernard Park. Five wins and two draws in the league, coupled with success in the Friendship Trophy on New Year’s Day had made Kyle Lightbourne’s side the team to beat.

They are two points behind PHC and Village but with matches in hand over their title rivals are still in with a chance of bagging the Triple Crown.

“We were hurt by our last result against Village,” Goater told The Royal Gazette.

“But that is football, you have your moments when you’re up and then there are moments like that. We had not tasted defeat in a while; nevertheless, we have put that game behind us now and we are on to the next.

“We like to look at every game as a final and we know that Paget will come to play. But we are also looking to get back to winning ways. We still have faith that there is more to be done.”

Paget coach Antwan Russell, whose side have picked up two wins and two draws in their last four fixtures, predicted a gripping encounter.

“Looking at Dandy Town’s form and our form, it should be an interesting game,” Russell said.

“We didn't do so well in this competition last season, so we're going to do our best and see how far we can go. If we can get past a team like Dandy Town, then our targets in this competition will change.

“Our preparations for the game haven't been ideal because of the weather but they have been good enough for us not to make any excuses.”

In another match scheduled for today, Tuff Dogs, the surprise package in last season's FA Cup, will fancy their chances against St David’s at Lord’s.

Last season’s finalists Village have a tricky fixture against Devonshire Colts at Police Field tomorrow.

Calvin Dill Jr, the Village interim coach, who won this competition with St George’s last season, is eager to take the Rams to their third straight final.

“We want to go all the way to the final. Hopefully, we go on to win it,” he said. “We are looking to put in the hard work and get the job done. It’s another 90 minutes that we have to play, with the possibility of going to 120 minutes and penalties.”

Last season, Village put Colts to the sword with a 5-1 victory in the FA Cup quarter-finals. Coach Ray Jones wants to avoid another loss against a side that have dominated them this season.

“We want to do better than the last time we met them in this competition and get a positive result,” Jones said. “While we felt we were in the game, the scoreline was not that great.

“Our preparations for the match have gone well. We have a few players missing because of suspension and injuries but our squad is deep enough for us to put together a competitive team.

“We have one more session on Saturday just to assess a few players. Some of our significant contributors will be going through a late fitness test, which will be their last chance to convince the coaching staff that they’re good to go on Sunday.

“One thing about cups is that you can put aside the league for a moment. We’ll forget about our last match against Cougars and focus on the knockout competition for now.”

Police Field is also the venue for an early kick-off between Young Men’s Social Club and X-Roads, the First Division leaders.

Holders St George’s, with two wins and a draw in their past three league matches, should not have difficulties against Corona League side Inter Bermuda at Wellington Oval. Before that contest, Hamilton Parish also expected to brush aside Terrace Onions.

PHC, the 11-times winners, fired up by their win against Wolves in the league, have an opportunity to progress when they make the trip to Somerset to face Trojans.