Garvey Maceo placed one foot in the semi-final of the ISSA/Wata daCosta Cup after a commanding 3-0 victory over Munro College in their Group B quarterfinal contest at Glenmuir High on Wednesday.

Garvey Maceo secured three crucial points courtesy of goals from Rushawn Whyte (74th), Omarian O’Brian (78th), and Rakeesh Jones (90+2), as they asserted their dominance in a game marked by missed chances, thrilling attacks, and at times, some good glovework by Jason Williams in goal for Munro College.

With the win, Garvey Maceo, dubbed the ‘Cubanz’ took control of Group B on four points, two points ahead of Central High and Ocho Rios High, who played out a 1-1 stalemate in the other fixture. By virtue of that, Garvey Maceo only require a point in their final contest against Ocho Rios High to confirm their semi-final berth.

It is for this reason that Head coach Lester Hibbert was beaming with delight at the outcome.

“It was an excellent performance; we are here for a reason so it is just for us to now go back to the training pitch, refocus and work hard again. The boys came out and they did excellent because they wanted this so going forward people will see what Garvey Maceo is all about,” Hibbert said.

It was a relentless display of control and attacking prowess by Garvey Maceo from the outset, as they were more aggressive and constantly challenged Munro’s backline.

In fact, they should have won by a wider margin as they created a string of early chances, but the finishes eluded them at that point.

In the 32nd minute, Everald Swaby offered a glimpse of Garvey Maceo’s intent when he dismissed his marker and let loose a powerful strike that forced Munro’s custodian Jason Williams into a crucial save at the near post.

That would be one of several moments where Williams proved vital in goal, as he stood tall against a flurry of Garvey Maceo attacks.

With the scoreline being goalless at the break, Garvey Maceo picked up where they left off on the resumption and went close a minute in as Rajay McLaughlin fired off a shot that skimmed wide of the post.

McLaughlin continued to test Munro’s defence in the 48th minute, his shot blocked by a quick-thinking defender. On the resulting corner, O’Brian’s effort eluded all and sundry and nearly found the net.

Garvey Maceo’s siege on Munro’s goal persisted as the match wore on, and Livingston Donaldson’s close-range attempt in the 61st minute demanded another save from Williams.

Williams again came to Munro’s rescue as he dived full stretch to deny Swaby’s powerful shot just five minutes later.

But the breakthrough felt inevitable and it came courtesy of Whyte, who fired a well-placed shot to the far corner for his fifth goal of the campaign.

Garvey Maceo doubled their lead four minutes later, as O’Brian, delivering his 11th goal of the season in spectacular style with a brilliant solo run that saw him glide past multiple defenders before calmly slotting the ball home.

With Munro reeling, the Clarendon team helped themselves to another goal. A Wilton Williams cross was mishandled by the otherwise impressive Jason Williams, allowing Jones to pounce and seal the win in time added.

Munro’s Head coach Kemar Ricketts was left disappointed but pointed out that they’ll look to bounce back in their final contest against Central High.

“It was a disappointing performance in the second half; we wanted to get something out of the game but such is life and we just have to regroup and come again,” Ricketts noted.

Wednesday’s results

Garvey Maceo 3, Munro College 0

Frome Technical 1, STETHS 3

Central High 1, Ocho Rios High 1

Tuesday’s Result

Glenmuir 4, McGrath 1