Vasco face a crucial three-day spell this week when they play important matches tonight and Thursday in pursuit of the Coca Cola First Division leadership and a spot in the Martonmere Cup final.

Tonight at Somerset (8.00), Vasco meet PHC in a league match that was postponed on the weekend. And on Thursday, they and Dandy Town will make a second attempt to play the Martonmere Cup semi-final tie at Somerset, with the winners meeting Boulevard in the November 11 final.

However, with the top spot in the league at stake, Vasco can't afford to look ahead to Thursday's clash which they hope will seal a third Martonmere Cup final berth in four years.

More important right now is a win over the Zebras which will enable them to regain the league lead they lost to Devonshire Colts on Sunday.

Vasco are strong favourites in both matches against teams in the bottom half of the standings, but veteran defender Earl Richardson insists they will not be taking their opponents lightly.

"I don't think so, it could be costly,'' warned Richardson who remembers the first minute goal his former team, Town, put past Vasco in their league meeting this season. Vasco came back to win 2-1 and from five league and cup matches this season they have compiled a record of four wins and a draw.

"This team is more sound and has a lot more goals set,'' said Richardson when asked to compare the current side to the one which won the league two years ago.

Last season, when so much was expected, Vasco came up short, winning only the Charity Cup at the beginning of the campaign. Richardson thinks the current Vasco squad is as good as the team that won the league in 1995-96.

"It's pretty close to that team, it's just that now we're getting used to each other a lot faster,'' he said.

"We can't wait to play PHC when we should be able to find out where we're at.'' Despite losing wingers Corey Hill and Irving Burgess, midfielders Karl Roberts, Frankie Simmons, Shawn Smith and Billy Kirkpatrick, and with Voorhees Astwood not playing because of injury, Vasco have already been blazing a hot trail.

Richardson names Hill, Burgess, Smith and Roberts as the key losses, though they don't appear to be missed as new signings, Meshach Wade, Shawn Simons, Ottis Steede, Clay Smith, Ascento Russell, Nashon Burrows and Keith Jennings have proven to be more than adequate replacements.

"Those (Hill, Burgess, Smith and Roberts) were the big losses,'' admitted the full back.

"They bring character to the game, the type of players they are. You can be a good player but if you have a good character you stand out more and get more respect on the field.'' The depth in the Vasco squad means more than one player for every position.

That makes the selection process a little harder for coaches John Rebello and Donovan Livingston.

"No one has a fight over who is going to start,'' said Richardson.

"Any player coming out late or who is injured knows his role, he has to fit in.'' Steede, Wade and Simons are all ex-PHC players so they will be looking to perform well against their former team who have managed just one win in three outings.

The Zebras, under new coach Johnny Nusum, are banking on youngsters this season while the likes of Mark Wade, Ricky Mallory and Kenny Mills provide the experience in key areas.