Despite having to face each other in the semifinal round of the 2015 Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Club Championship next month, current Digicel T&T Pro League leaders Central FC and second-placed defending champions, DirecTV W Connection, are both confident of securing berths at the 2015-2016 CONCACAF Champions League.
The semifinal and final stages of the Caribbean Club Championship will be contested on May 22 and 24 respectively, with T&T eyeing the likely host nation having two clubs, still involved along with Jamaica's Montego Bay United and Haiti's Don Bosco FC in semifinal two.
The three-year-old Central FC club, making its debut in the tournament advanced to the semifinals after it won Group One played at the Guyana National Stadium in Providence with wins over Suriname's Inter Moengotapoe (2-0) and host club, Alpha United (3-1).
Three-time CFU Club champions and seven-time finalist W Connection was more emphatic in reaching the last-four as it crushed Guyana Defence Force 7-1 and followed up with a 7-2 bashing of Antigua and Barbuda's SAP FC in Group Two action at the Ato Boldon Stadium, Couva.
Jamaica's Waterhouse FC was expected to be the fourth club in Group Two, but withdrew at the last minute due to financial issues.
Montego Bay, was also impressive in Group Three beating Club Sportif Moulien of Guadeloupe, 1-0; Haiti's America FC, 2-1; and Suriname's SV Excelsior, 3-0.
And in Group Four, Don Bosco hammered Bahamas' Lyford Cay FC 10-0 and followed with a 5-1 beating of Virgin Islands' Helenites Sporting Club and Unite Sainte Rose, 1-0.
However, the semi-finals are expected to be keenly contested as the winners will automatically qualify for the 2015/2016 Concacaf Champions League, which begins in August, while the third-place winners will secure the third and final Caribbean berth.
The semifinal winners will also lock horns on May 24 to decide the Caribbean champions.
Speaking after his return from Guyana with his team, Central FC coach Terry Fenwick said qualifying for the Concacaf Champions League is a big incentive.
He said: "We know a lot about W Connection and we are very confident in our own abilities and strengths.
"We've got nothing to fear in our first Caribbean tournament and it's about attacking the game and getting the best result possible."
Following his team's win on Sunday, W Connection technical director Stuart Charles-Fevrier said: "Naturally it was always our objective to win the group and we are very pleased with that.
"The goal now is to reach the Champions League and reaching the semifinal of the CFU Club Championship is a step in the right direction but we won't be satisfied until we qualify for the Champions League."
With respect to the semifinal clash with Couva-rivals Central FC, Charles-Fevrier said: "It's normal for me to accept whichever team we have to beat, because we want to be the champions of the Caribbean. And to be the champions of the Caribbean you must play some of the top teams from anywhere in the region, so meeting Central is not a problem."
With the Caribbean Club Championship semi-final and final a month away, Central FC and W Connection will shift their focus back on the high priority Digicel Pro League championship.
Central, six points clear at the top of the standings with 49 points and two matches remaining, must first face P Fortin Civic from 8 pm on Friday at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo following a 6 pm kickoff between North East Stars and St Ann's Rangers.
The "Couva Sharks," winners of this season's First Citizens Cup and Rawle Fletcher (DPL Round One) and Akeem Adams (DPL Round Two) under previous coach Zoran Vranes, who was replaced by Fenwick last month, will then wrap up their 2014-2015 championship campaign against Stars on Tuesday from 8 pm at Couva in a rescheduled fixture.
W Connection, with 43 points and three matches remaining, must beat Caledonia AIA from on Friday followed by Tuesday's rescheduled match versus Police FC and then Jabloteh, while hoping for a Central FC slip-up.