Seven-time champions Cornwall College and Manchester High survived penalty kicks to advance to the quarter-finals of the ISSA Ben Francis Cup, where they will be joined by Clarendon College and Denbigh High.
Cornwall College came from a goal down to earn a 1-1 draw against Happy Grove High before winning 5-4 on penalties at Drax Hall, the same margin that Manchester High beat Dinthill Technical by after they played out a 2-2 draw at Wembley Centre of Excellence.
Clarendon College beat Kemps Hill High 3-1 in their all-Clarendon derby at Foga Road, while Denbigh High were 2-0 winners over Alphansus Davis High at Brooks Park.
The winners will await the four teams that fail to advance past the daCosta Cup quarter-finals for the next round of the Ben Francis Cup, which will be played on November 21st.
A number of teams booked spots in the Round of 16 as action rolled on in the ISSA/Wata daCosta Cup on Tuesday.
Cornwall College and Kemps Hill secured 4-0 and 1-0 wins over Spot Valley and Rusea’s, respectively, to advance from Group 1 of the second round.
In Group 3 action, STETHS and Manchester each finished the second round on seven points after wins over the Manning’s School and William Knibb Memorial, respectively. STETHS defeated Manning’s 3-0 on the road while Manchester beat William Knibb 1-0 at home.
In Group 7, Glenmuir got their third win in as many games in the second round with a 3-0 win over Paul Bogle High at home while Clarendon College defeated Titchfield High 2-0 at Wembley Community Centre to finish on six points.
In Group 8, McGrath advanced as group winners with seven points from three games thanks to a 3-2 win over Christiana at Dinthill Technical while Garvey Maceo also advanced thanks to a 5-0 win over St. Mary High at Highgate Community Centre.
Clarendon College continued their quest to defend their ISSA/DaCosta Cup title with a 6-0 victory over Thompson Town High at Foga Road High on Wednesday.
Justin Hayles and Keanu Jennings both scored doubles to help the defending champs move to a perfect nine points from as many games to lead Zone H.
Denbigh High moved up into second place in Zone H after their 5-1 win over Edwin Allen High at Edwin Allen.
Three other schools also got their third win as Ocho Rios High, William Knibb Memorial and Manchester High secured victories over Aabuthnott Gallimore, Discovery Bay High and deCarteret College, respectively.
Ocho Rios High improved their advantage in Zone K after a 4-0 win over Aabuthnott Gallimore High with Tyrese Brown scoring a hat trick and Ryan Francis getting the other.
Ocho Rios High are now on nine points after a third straight win, four more than second place Ferncourt High.
William Knibb Memorial managed a 1-0 win over Discovery Bay High for their third win in Zone D while Michael Reid and Javis Lloyd scored for Manchester High in their 2-1 win over deCarteret College.
Tyrese Gowe and Raheem Harris both scored doubles to lead Dinthill Technical to a 6-0 win over Charlemont High as Gaybriel Anderson and Giovanni Afflick also got one goal each.
This was the second win for Dinthill Technical who now lead Zone J on goal difference over McGrath High.
At Jarrett Park, St James High rallied twice to earn an exciting 3-3 draw against Green Pond High in Zone A.
Green Pond got off to a fast start and were leading 2-0 with goals from Garth-Dane Bromwell in the seventh minute and Jerome Whynn in the 16th minute.
St James hit back with goals from Kevar Stewart in the 36th minute and Rory Smith in the 43rd minute as they were tied at 2-2 at half time.
Bromwell restored Green Pond High’s lead in the 46th minute but St James salvaged a point when Tariq Kerr scored in the 77th minute.
Garvey Maceo rebounded from their loss to Glenmuir High on Saturday with a 12-1 beating of Porus High with Omarion O’Brian and Rajay McLaughlin both leading the way with hat tricks while Maliek Robinson scored a brace.
Other results
Maggoty High 2-0 Lacovia High
Mile Gully High 0-2 Alphansus Davis High
Holmwood Technical 3-1 Knox College
Claude McKay High 0-3 Lennon High
Yallahs High 0-2 Morant Bay High
Robert Lightbourne High 1-3 Paul Bogle High
Seaforth High 0-4 Happy Grove High
Titchfield High 2-1 St. Mary High
Horace Clarke High 1-4 Port Antonio High
The inaugural staging of the First Half Only 45 Schoolboy football Extravaganza, is expected to ignite the Montego Bay Sports Complex in Catherine Hall on Saturday, as six Manning and daCosta Cup schools will vie for cash prize and a title to boost their confidence ahead of the upcoming ISSA schoolboy football season.
This groundbreaking tournament, set to take place under the patronage of Mayor of Montego Bay, Richard Vernon, promises an exhilarating day of competition and community spirit, beginning with an exciting “kickoff” ceremony led by the Mayor.
The evening's highlight features electrifying matches between St. Catherine High, Rusea's High, William Knibb High, Cornwall College, Manchester High, and Irwin High Schools. Each team is prepared to showcase their best in this specially curated tournament, with the winning school set to pocket a grand prize of JMD$500,000.
Dr. Dean Weatherly, Head coach of Irwin High School, welcomed the initiative, which aims to revitalize interest in schoolboy football across Jamaica, broaden its fan base, and attract investment from football governing bodies and corporate entities into grassroots football development.
“The 45 Minutes tournament is a great concept and is one where we can see the other talents that exist in Western Jamaica as well as to see where we are in our training sessions. As far as the tournament goes, it is one that people need to come out and watch as they’ll be seeing some great young minds at work and talent on the field,” Weatherly declared.
St. Catherine High’s Anthony Patrick echoed similar sentiments.
“It's a welcomed opportunity, one we are looking forward to, and one that will benefit our players immensely, especially the youngsters we want to showcase this schoolboy season, ones who will be graduating this year. The 45-minute format is crucial—winning in the first half is always crucial so this concept encourages a different type of sportsmanship, we'll be putting our best foot forward to make an impact and allow the young talent to shine,” Patrick shared.
For Mayor of Montego Bay, Richard Vernon, the sport presents limitless opportunities for community and individual development in Jamaica, particularly in the Western part of the island.
“The sport has experienced a significant decline in Western Jamaica in recent years, evidenced by the success of teams at the national and schoolboy levels. Therefore, all support is needed to revitalize the discipline and provide an outlet for youngsters to be meaningfully engaged,” the Mayor said.
“It also provides unique advantages for sports tourism in western Jamaica, with Montego Bay being among the top destinations globally. As such, I'm vested to reimagine and rebuild Western football by playing a key role,” he added.
Meanwhile, Erin Mitchell of sponsors Wisynco, pointed out that lending support to the initiative was a no-brainer.
“Schoolboy Football is a crucial pillar for many of our brands, and we are proud to support this initiative in the west, reinforcing our commitment to schoolboy football in Jamaica,” Mitchell noted.
Pre-sold tickets are $1,000 and $2,500 for Bleachers and Grandstand, while tickets at the gate, are $1,500 and $3,000. Pre-sold tickets are available at Western Sports,
Reigning Ben Francis champions Glenmuir High had a positive start in the ISSA/WATA daCosta Cup quarterfinals, as they blanked Manchester High 2-0 in a lively Group A encounter at their May Pen base on Wednesday.
Glenmuir, who are contesting the quarterfinal round for the first time since 2017, got their goals four minutes apart through Ja-son Whyte (51st) and Orane Watson (55th), and are now poised for a semi-final berth, provided they see off defending champions Clarendon College and Christiana High in their next two fixtures.
Clarendon College, who are heavily favoured to retain their title, also started positively with a 4-0 beating of Christiana High to grab an early lead in the group. They enjoy a two-goal difference over Glenmuir, heading into Saturday’s second round of games.
At May Pen, Glenmuir came out more purposeful, as Kyle Gordon paraded his nippy footwork in breaking down Manchester defence, while DeAndre Johnson forced a save from Jevanni Bennett with a stinging right-footer from about 20 yards out, in the early exchanges.
In fact, Manchester’s first real show of quality in attack came in the 14th minute when they got in behind Glenmuir’s defence, but were unable to find the go-ahead goal.
Both teams continued to assert their attacking prowess in the probe to break the deadlock. Glenmuir again went close in the 36th when Gordon found Watson at the top of the 18-yard box, but the latter’s effort was kept out by Bennett diving away to his left.
Manchester responded shortly after and it took a tidy save from Antwone Gooden in goal for Glenmuir to deny Michael Reid on the stroke of the break to ensure the score remained goalless.
However, Glenmuir again came out spiritedly on the resumption and inevitable found the breakthrough six minutes in when Whyte’s well-struck freekick from about 30 yards out, beat Bennett all ends up. It was a goal befitting of his first for the season.
And before Manchester could contemplate a comeback, they suffered a second blow when Watson outpaced a defender and drove a right-footed effort past the hapless Bennett for his sixth of the season.
The tempo of the game fell from there and it wasn’t until the later stages of the contest that both teams again showed some life in attack, albeit, failing to capitalise on the opportunities.
Glenmuir’s Head coach Andrew Peart said the win is just what the doctor ordered.
“It is important because we wanted to start the group very well. At the half we weren’t so pleased with the intensity at which we played, we gave Manchester High a little bit too much room, especially in the middle of the field.
“But second half, we got a brilliant goal by Jason Whyte and then it was about pressing high up the field again that led to the second goal. So I am very pleased in terms of the reaction in the second half and in the end, the result,” Peart said in a post-game interview.
His counterpart Patrick Graham believe his team was lacking in parts.
“First, let me congratulate the Glenmuir team. I believe they showed a bit more fight than us, we surrendered some crucial areas on the pitch when they were in possession and it cost us the game.
“The positive is that after going two-nil down, we showed a little bit more fight and more composure and it shows that we can play whenever we decide to play. So, we just have to prepare for the next two games,” Graham noted.
Meanwhile, over in Group two, Garvey Maceo High and Dinthill Technical registered 4-0 and 2-0 victories over BB Coke and Cornwall College respectively. Much like it is in Group A, Garvey Maceo hold a two-goal difference over Dinthill Technical.
Wednesday’s results
Group A
Clarendon College 4, Christiana High 0
Glenmuir High 2, Manchester High 0
Group B
BB Coke 0, Garvey Maceo 4
Dinthill Technical 2, Cornwall College 0
Saturday’s fixtures
Group A
Manchester vs Clarendon College @ Manchester
Christiana vs Glenmuir @ Glenmuir
Group B
Cornwall College vs BB Coke @ Jarrett Park
Dinthill Technical vs Garvey Maceo @ Ewarton Sports Complex
Defending champions Clarendon College remain on course to retain their ISSA/Wata DaCosta Cup title after securing a 1-0 win over STETHS in Group 1 Round of 16 action on Wednesday.
Both teams entered the much-anticipated contest with a win under their belt but the 10-time DaCosta Cup champions now have six points from two games to strengthen their lead atop Group 1.
STETHS are now third in the group after Cornwall College beat Mile Gully 2-0 at Jarret Park to also move to three points, but, more importantly, have a goal difference of 1 compared to STETHS’ zero.
In Group 2 play, B.B Coke defeated Manchester High 4-2 in a top-of-the-table clash at STETHS. B.B Coke now have six points from two games while Manchester have three.
This was Manchester’s first loss of the season. They will know their standing in Group 2 after Happy Grove takes on Tacky High at Carder Park on Thursday. Both teams are looking for their first points of the Round of 16.
Dinthill recovered from an opening game draw against McGrath High with a 1-0 win over Christiana at Brooks Park to take over top spot in Group 3.
Christiana, who entered the day as leaders after a 3-2 win over William Knibb in their first game, are now second after William Knibb and McGrath played out a 0-0 draw at Drax Hall.
Glenmuir secured a 5-0 win over Port Antonio at Glenmuir to move to four points and top spot in Group 4 on goal difference.
Garvey Maceo are also on four points after a 1-0 win over Frome Technical at Foga Road. Glenmuir have a four-goal advantage heading into Saturday’s final round of games in this stage.
Play in the Round of 16 will come to an end on Saturday. In Group 1, Clarendon College will take on Cornwall College in a mouthwatering clash at Foga Road while STEHTS will take on Mile Gully at Brooks Park.
Group 2 will see B.B. Coke face Tacky at Drax Hall and Manchester take on Happy Grove at Manchester.
Dinthill will host William Knibb while McGrath and Christiana battle at the Ewarton Sports Complex in Group 3.
In Group 4, Glenmuir and Frome will do battle at the Llandilo Sports Complex knowing a win for either means a spot in the quarterfinals while Garvey Maceo will look to book their spot with a win over Port Antonio at Carder Park.
Manchester High, Clarendon College, Central High and the Manning’s School have advanced to the semi-finals of this year’s ISSA/Digicel daCosta Cup.
Clarendon College and Manchester are the form teams heading into the final four having won all three games in their respective quarterfinal round groups to finish with nine points. Group B winners Clarendon College also failed to concede a goal.
Second place in Group B was taken by Central who will be in the semis for the first time in their school’s history after getting a crucial 2-0 win in their final game over Edwin Allen at Foga Road on Monday for their only points of the round. It ended up being enough in the end as they advanced on goal difference after finishing level on points with Dinthill and Edwin Allen.
Last year’s beaten finalists, the Manning’s School, are once again in the final four after getting six points from their three games in Group A while group winners Manchester High are back in the daCosta Cup semis for the first time since 2016.
Both games will be played at STETHS on November 23.
Manchester will play Central at 2:00pm before Clarendon College and Manning’s lock horns at 4:00pm.
Clarendon College became the fourth and final team to advance to the semi-finals of the 2021 DaCosta Cup football competition on Tuesday after recording a 3-1 win over McGrath High at St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) to finish with a perfect nine points from their three games in Zone 4.
Both DaCosta Cup semi-finals will be played at 3:00 pm on January 12 with Dinthill Technical taking on Mannings High School at the Montego Bay Sports Complex while Garvey Maceo will do battle with Clarendon College at STETHS.
Meanwhile, Manchester High beat Cornwall College 2-1 at Green Pond in Tuesday’s other Zone 4 encounter to finish second in the zone with six points and advance to the Ben Francis Cup Knockout.
Manchester High and Cornwall College join Edwin Allen, Christiana High, Munro College, Vere Technical, STETHS and Frome Technical in the Ben Francis Cup.
Wednesday was an action-packed day of schoolboy football across the island.
In Manning Cup action, Kingston Technical recorded a clinical 3-0 win over Bridgeport at the Spanish Town Prison Oval to move back to the top of Group A with 12 points from five games, two points ahead of defending champions, Jamaica College.
Charlie Smith currently sits third in the group with nine points from their five games.
Group B may be the most exciting as there are five teams that have a chance to qualify for the quarterfinals alongside Camperdown, who have 16 points from their six games, with one match to play. Excelsior High School and Jonathan Grant both moved to 11 points from six games after defeating Jose Marti and Tivoli, respectively.
Excelsior beat Jose Marti 6-0 at Jamaica College and now sits second in the group on 11 points with a goal difference of 11 while Jonathan Grant won 1-0 over Tivoli Gardens at the Spanish Town Prison Oval to move to third on 11 points with a goal difference of three.
Tivoli is fourth in Group B with 10 points while STATHS, who scored a 6-0 win over Dunoon Technical at Stadium East on Wednesday, are fifth on nine points.
St. Jago High is sixth in the group with eight points.
Clan Carthy High beat Papine High 1-0 at Jamaica College in a battle of the two bottom teams in Group C.
Wednesday also saw the beginning of the quarterfinal round playoff fixtures for Zones C, F and G in the DaCosta Cup.
In Zone C, the doubleheader at STETHS saw Lacovia record the only win of the day with a 2-1 victory over Munro College.
STETHS and B.B Coke played out a 3-3 draw.
The top four teams in Zone C have now all played six matches with one more playoff fixture remaining.
STETHS lead Zone C with 13 points followed by Munro College with 12, Lacovia on 10. B.B. Coke has seven points.
Meanwhile, Garvey Maceo maintained their perfect record with a 4-0 win over Foga Road in their Zone F playoff fixture at Garvey Maceo.
In the other playoff fixture in Zone F at Vere, the hosts secured a 1-0 win over Old Harbour High.
Garvey Maceo and Vere have all but confirmed their progression to the quarterfinal round with 18 and 13 points, respectively, with each having one match left to play.
Old Harbour are third on seven points and Foga Road are fourth on six.
The first set of matches in the quarterfinal playoff round in Zone G saw Happy Grove get a 4-1 victory over Port Antonio High to ascend to the top of the zone on 10 points.
St. Thomas Tech had to settle for a 2-2 draw with Seaforth in the other playoff fixture in the zone and now sits second on nine points.
Port Antonio are third on seven points and Seaforth are fourth with four points.
In the regular zone matches from Wednesday; in the Zone-A double-header at William Knibb, Irwin High and St. James High emerged winners.
Irwin got by Spot Valley 3-0 while St. James beat Maldon 4-0.
All eight teams in Zone A have now played six matches with William Knibb at the top with 15 points closely followed by Cornwall College with 13 and Irwin with 12.
Irwin and Herbert Morrison both have 12 points but Irwin is ahead on goal difference.
Mannings High School remains atop of Zone B following a 4-0 win over Green Pond.
Green Island and Rusea’s High played to a 2-2 draw at Green Pond.
Frome secured a 4-0 victory over Petersfield at Llandilo Sports Complex in the other Zone B fixture.
Mannings lead the seven-team zone with 13 points from their five matches. Frome Technical, which has also played five matches is second on 12 while Petersfield currently sits third on seven.
In the Zone D double-header at Manchester High, Manchester and Christiana both got crucial wins over Bellefield High and DeCarteret College respectively.
Manchester High won 3-1 to move to 13 points from their five games with a goal difference of 23 to lead the seven-team zone.
Christiana High beat DeCarteret College 2-0 to also move to 13 points from five games, only trailing Manchester on goal difference.
Holmwood Technical is now third in Zone D with 10 points from five games after hammering Alston High 7-0 at Kirkvine in the third Zone D match on the day.
Dinthill Technical secured their spot in the quarterfinal round with a 2-0 win over St. Mary High in the first game of a Zone H double-header at Drax Hall.
Dinthill advances as the winners of Zone H with 16 points from their six games.
The second match of the double-header saw Brown’s Town secure a crucial 1-0 win over York Castle to keep alive their hopes of a quarterfinal round berth.
In the third Zone H match on the day, McGrath earned a vital 3-2 win over Ocho Rios High to set up an exciting final match-day that will determine who will join Dinthill as quarterfinalists.
Ocho Rios, Charlemont and McGrath all have eight points heading into their final matches, with Ocho Rios currently occupying second-place with a plus-eight goal difference.
Charlemont High lie third with a goal difference of +1 and McGrath are fourth with a goal difference of 0.
Kingston Technical produced another impressive performance to remain at the top of group A as Manning Cup action continued today.
Goals from Worrell Nelson in the 2nd minute, Beeko Smythe in the 21st minute, and Tadane Williams in the 63rd minute propelled them to a 3-1 win over former champions, St. Georges College, in the first match of a doubleheader at Stadium East.
Lamonth Rochester got the goal for St. Georges College in the 11th minute.
Kingston Technical head coach, Shaun Charlton, pointed to his team’s discipline as a reason they were able to get the job done.
“We have discipline within the team and persons who want to show Jamaica, and by extension abroad, that there is talent in the inner city,” he said.
The second game of the doubleheader saw Kingston High beat Calabar 1-0 to register their first win of the season.
Bridgeport beat Charlie Smith 1-0 in the other group game at the Spanish Town Prison Oval.
Kingston Technical remains on top of the group with nine points followed by Charlie Smith in second with six and St. Georges College in third, also with six.
Meanwhile, in zone B Dacosta Cup action, a doubleheader at Llandilo saw one goal being scored between four teams.
Green Pond and Petersfield played out a 0-0 draw in the first encounter while the second game saw Godfrey Stewart secure a 1-0 over former champions, Rusea’s.
Frome Technical beat Green Island 4-0 in the 3:30 kick-off at Wespow Park.
Frome now moves to the top of the zone with nine points followed by Mannings in second with seven and Petersfield in third, also with seven points.
In zone D, Bellefield thrashed Alston 7-0 and Manchester beat Belair 2-0 in a doubleheader at Manchester.
In the other zone D game, Christiana secured a 2-1 win over Holmwood at Kirkvine.
Christiana still leads zone D with 10 points. Manchester and Bellefield are second and third with seven and five points respectively.
In Zone F, Garvey Maceo maintained their perfect record in the group stage so far with a 3-0 win over Central High at home.
The second game of the day at Garvey Maceo saw Vere Technical get a 2-1 win over Foga Road.
Garvey Maceo leads zone F with 12 points and Vere are second with seven.
McGrath beat York Castle 4-1 in the first game of a zone H doubleheader at Drax Hall.
Charlemont got a 5-2 win over St. Mary High in the second game.
With the win, Charlemont move to the top of the zone with eight points while Dinthill sits second on seven and Ocho Rios are third on five.
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