They beat Renaissance 2-1 to go solo at the helm of the classification table with 13 points. The tussle for leadership between Astres and Unisport turned out to be in favour of the latter as the club from the Upper Nkam Division out smarted their opponent of the fifth day of play, Renaissance 2-1 to assume the leadership position of the MTN Elite One championship.
Astres and Unisport were co-leaders after the 4th day of play on ten points each but thanks to the victory, Unisport out paced Astres who lost 0-1 the fratricidal battle against their fellow brothers of the economic capital, New Stars.
The defeat did not only cost Astres the pole position but also caused them to drop to the third position. Douala Athletic Clubs edged the colossus from the North, Coton Sport 1-0 to assume the runner-up position. News Stars gained one place on the classification chart thanks to their victory over Astres. Meanwhile the defending champions, Union continued their slow and laborious movement up the table thanks to a 3-0 victory over Fovu of Baham in an early Day 5 encounter at the Reunification stadium in Douala on Friday, March 22. They now occupy the 7th position with seven points after having recorded two victories, one defeat and one draw.
Another remarkable feature of the 5th day of play was the poor performance of the Cameroonian representatives in continental competitions. Coton Sport, engaged in the African Champion’s League, was humbled by little known Douala Athletic Club. Whereas, Panthere still involved in the African Confederations Cup, narrowly edged Njalla Quan and occupy an unenviable 9th position on the classification chart. The Yaounde-based clubs; Tonnerre and Canon, who started the season with a firm determination to clinch a continental spot, are still languishing in the middle of the table, occupying the 6th and 8th positions respectively. Renaissance, Fovu and to a lesser extent, Njalla Quan, continue to be the point distributors of the championship. Renaissance and Fovu occupy the 13th and 14th positions respectively, having recorded only two points after five days of play. Njalla Quan in the 12th position has barely three points and are yet to hop out of the danger zone.
