Foresters Lead Absa Premier League After Clinical Away Win Over LightStars
VICTORIA, Seychelles — Foresters maintained their commanding position at the top of the Absa Premier League with a composed 3-0 away victory over LightStars at Stad Amitiee on Day 11, extending their lead as the title race begins to take clearer shape at the season’s midpoint. Ranaivo Albert Zo Tahiana struck in the sixth minute to settle early nerves, Jean-Yves Ernesta doubled the advantage 10 minutes after the restart, and Brandon Labrosse added a third in the 61st minute to seal a result that pushed Foresters to 24 points from 11 matches.
The form of Foresters and defending champions Cote d’Or is generating considerable excitement among football supporters in Seychelles, with only two points separating the top two sides and several other clubs demonstrating the quality to disrupt the leading pair. With the season approaching its halfway stage, the Absa Premier League is shaping up as one of the most competitive in recent memory, with a promoted side already embedded in the title conversation.
Defending champions Cote d’Or kept the pressure on with an entertaining 4-2 victory over St Michel United at Stad Linite, with Elio Mbolatovo levelling and then putting Cote d’Or ahead in the 38th and 39th minutes before Gildas Limberaza extended the lead after the interval, according to match reports. Mbolatovo, the league’s top scorer with 10 goals, has been central to Cote d’Or’s attacking dominance, though the champions have conceded 16 goals compared to Foresters’ 12, suggesting defensive solidity may yet prove decisive. Newly promoted Bel Air continued to impress with a 4-2 win over Real Maldive, sitting third on 21 points.
Foresters have recorded eight wins against three defeats, scoring 24 goals and conceding only 12 for the best goal difference in the league at plus 12. Cote d’Or have scored 25 goals, the highest tally in the division, but their goal difference of plus 9 reflects a more open style of play. Bel Air, who earned promotion after winning the SFF Championship title last season, have accumulated six wins, three draws, and two losses, conceding only 12 goals and demonstrating the defensive organisation typical of sides that prioritise solidity on their return to the top flight.
Anse Reunion secured a narrow 1-0 victory over St Louis in a closely contested affair, with Ryan Henriette finding the net deep into first-half stoppage time. PTL Bazar Brothers defeated Revengers 3-1 at Stad Amitiee to strengthen their mid-table position, with both PTL and Anse Reunion on 20 points and competing closely for fourth place. At the bottom of the table, Revengers remain without a victory all season, collecting only a solitary point from 11 matches and conceding 32 goals, the worst defensive record in the division.
Brandon Labrosse of Foresters and Fadhula Botomanga of Bel Air each sit on nine goals, close behind Mbolatovo in the scoring charts, while several other players on five and six goals ensure the golden boot race remains wide open as the second half of the season approaches.
