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• Calabar, Camperdown play out 1-1 stalemate to end preliminary round

  Calabar High School and Camperdown High signed off the preliminary round of the Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA)/Digicel Manning Cup on a positive note as they played out a 1-1 stalemate in their final Zone D encounter at Red Hills Road on Saturday.

  Jahreem McKenzie fired Camperdown in front in the 25th minute, but that effort was cancelled out by Jayden Perry (30th), who ensured Calabar remain upbeat heading into the second round for the first time in seven years.

  With the point, Calabar ended second on 23 points, two points behind STATHS, who blanked Haile Selassie 5-0 in the other group contest. Vauxhall (13 points) ended third ahead of Camperdown (12 points), Haile Selassie (12 points) and Kingston Technical (zero).

  Calabar’s Head coach Andrew Price was pleased with the effort of his fringe players.

  “It was basically an audition for some of the players that didn’t get any playing time throughout the round. So we took a look at them as we go into the second round, and I must say well done to the team for this round, but the work just begins now; we have to be steadfast and resolute in our preparation for the second round because we know we are going to come up against tougher opposition,” Price said in a post-game interview.

  Despite already being through to the next round of the competition, Calabar were in no mood to relent, as they were spirited at the start and looked more threatening in open play of the early exchanges. They created a few half chances but couldn’t get on target.

  That allowed Camperdown to break the deadlock against the run of play when McKenzie got on the end of a through pass and confidently finished his third of the season.

  However, the lead was short-lived as Calabar pulled level when Camperdown’s goalkeeper Roshawn Gilroy failed to advance to a loose ball and Perry capitalised with a close range finish to also register his third of the season.

  The second half offered very little to write home about, though Calabar asserted their authority on the contest and bossed possession. Still, chances were at a premium, as the Red Hills Road boys only had a couple half looks on goal, which amounted to nothing.

  The stalemate left Camperdown’s coach, Karume Huie, beaming with pride at the strides made by his young team, though they missed out on the second round.

  “Yes, disappointed that we didn’t make the next round, but in live you see a light at the end of the tunnel and so I am proud of my boys. I gave some 13- and 14-year-olds a chance to play in this game, so it’s a work in progress, and we will bounce back stronger next year,” Huie declared.

  Saturday’s results

  Calabar 1, Camperdown 1

  STATHS 5, Haile Selassie 0

  Mona 1, Charlie Smith 0

  Vauxhall 6, Kingston Technical 2

  Jamaica College 7, Bridgeport 1

• Juve 'complete' without suspended Pogba, says club director Giuntoli

  Paul Pogba's hopes of playing for Juventus again took a hit on Saturday when Bianconeri director Cristiano Giuntoli said that the Serie A side are complete without him.

  The 31-year-old midfielder will end his doping ban in March after testing positive for DHEA in September 2023, a banned substance that boosts testosterone levels.

  The former France international had his punishment cut earlier this month from an initial four years to 18 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and will be eligible to play for Juve as soon as the ban ends.

  Yet Giuntoli suggested Thiago Motta's side are content in coping without the World Cup winner, at least for the time being.

  "Our position is clear. Pogba has been a great player, he has been out for a long time and last year we were forced to invest in other players," Giuntoli told DAZN ahead of Saturday's 1-0 win over Lazio.

  "So now the squad is complete as it is."

  Juventus have not missed Pogba so far this season, remaining unbeaten through their first eight league games after Mario Gila's own goal handed them the narrow win over Lazio.

  The club are yet to release any further update on Pogba, whose contract in Turin expires in June 2026.

• Girona boss Michel rues injury issues after defeat to Real Sociedad

  Girona head coach Michel was left to rue a lack of attacking options but urged his side to cope with injury absences after Saturday's 1-0 defeat to Real Sociedad.

  Last season's surprise package Girona have struggled to find form this campaign, slipping to 13th in the LaLiga standings after their fourth defeat in 10 games.

  Mikel Oyarzabal scored the only goal of the game on the stroke of half-time as Girona put in another disappointing performance at home.

  Michel lamented his side's depleted attack following injuries to forwards Bryan Gil, Yaser Asprilla and Abel Ruiz.

  "We have to keep working, the offensive potential of the team without injured players... you lack depth, you always lose somewhere, we don't have any player on the pitch who can play as a winger," the Spanish manager told reporters.

  "We need to improve in our final pass, in our one-on-one determination, to get into the box more. These things are the most difficult thing in football, scoring goals.

  "Last year we had a lot of goals, this year it's harder for us."

  Fans at Girona's Montilivi stadium expressed their frustration after another underwhelming performance, but Michel backed his players in the face of criticism.

  "Fans have to understand the process in which the players are. There is no player, because I would not allow it, that does not give his maximum performance in terms of attitude, mentality, illusion, motivation, energy," he said.

  "If they say that we play good or not, I respect that, but we try to play good football and mistakes are part of the game.

  "It's not easy, we faced a team with 14 internationals and for the first half hour we tried to go for them... you can't say to any Girona player that they don't give their all for this shirt."

  Girona will look to bounce back when they Slovan Bratislava in the Champions League on Tuesday.