It’s down to the top eight in the INSPORTS National Primary Schools’ Netball and Football competitions with four football games set to kick off on Thursday.

Defending all-island netball champion St Patrick’s of Kingston will be joined in the quarterfinal round by Corinaldi (St James), Savanna-La-Mar (Westmoreland), Brompton (St Elizabeth), Bethabara (Manchester), Half-Way-Tree (St Andrew), Lyssons and White Horses (St Thomas).

St Patrick’s brushed aside Golden Grove of St Ann and will meet Brompton Primary, who defeated Flankers of St James. Corinaldi dismissed New Hope of Manchester to book their date with Savanna-La-Mar, who turned back Irwin Primary of St James.

Former champions Bethabara defeated Black River (St Elizabeth) and will meet Half-Way-Tree who defeated Nazareth of Manchester.

The fourth matchup will be an all-St Thomas affair between Lyssons and White Horses. Lysson dismissed Oracabessa of St Mary, while White Horses defeated Pot Maria also of St Mary.

Meanwhile, a new champion will be crowned in the football competition, as last year’s winners Pembroke Hall were eliminated in the first round.

The teams that made the top eight are St Aloysuis and Rosseau (Kingston), Port Antonio and Port Maria (St Mary), Corinaldi (St James), Clarke’s Town (Trelawny), Mandeville Primary (Manchester) and Holland (St Elizabeth).

There will be four games on Thursday, with St Aloysius and Rosseau set to lock horns at Jamaica College field starting at 11:30am, and Mandeville play Holland at STETHS at 10:00am.

At Annotto Bay MPSC field, Port Antonio tackle Port Maria at 11:30am, while Corinaldi and Clarke’s Town will meet at William Knibb High School at 2:00pm.

In the round of 16, Corinaldi turned back Unity (Westmoreland) 3-0 in their second leg encounter, for a 4-0 aggregate scoreline, while Clarke’s Town beat Bethel (Hanover) 3-0 winning 4-2 on aggregate.

Mandeville defeated Brompton (St Elizabeth) 2-0 on aggregate after playing to a 0-0 draw in the first leg, while Holland defeated Ballars Valley (St Elizabeth) 2-0 for a 3-2 aggregate win.

St Aloysius were the most impressive, as they dispatched Denbigh (Clarendon) 3-0 for 6-0 on aggregate scoreline, while Rousseau registered a hard-fought win over Spanish Town on penalties after both legs ended goalless.

Elsewhere, Port Antonio defeated Enfield of St Mary 4-1 in their second-leg meeting, after a goalless stalemate in the first leg, while Port Maria were impressive in destroying Norwich of Portland 5-0, to win 6-0 on aggregate.

The stage is set for some epic encounters. 

Football Games on Thursday

Mandeville Primary vs Holland Primary @ STETHS at 10:00 am

St Aloysius Primary vs Rousseau Primary @ JC at 11:30 am

Port Antonio Primary vs Port Maria Primary @ Annotto Bay MPSC at 11:30 am

Corinaldi Primary vs Clarke’s Town Primary at William Knibb High School @ 2 pm

The Institute of Sports’ Primary Schools Football and Netball competitions are now down the last 32 after the parish champions have been decided and the draw for the island playoffs completed.

The competition saw the participation of 280 schools for football and 190 schools for netball. This involved the active participation of approximately 8,210 students, with 5,290 participating in football inclusive of 573 females and 2,850 for netball as the parish champions were decided.

St Patrick’s Primary of Kingston are defending all-island netball champion, and they were drawn in Zone 4 alongside Golden Grove Primary of St Thomas, Lime Hall of St Ann and Mandeville Primary of Manchester.

The schools were provided with gears by INSPORTS, with action scheduled to get underway on Tuesday, January 30, when St Patrick’s takes on Lime Hall Primary.

There will be a new champion in the football as the defending champion Pembroke Hall Primary were eliminated during the St Andrew playoffs.

Permanent Secretary, Denzil Thorpe, speaking on behalf of Minister of Sports, Olivia Grange, said the tournaments mark another special achievement in Jamaica’s grassroots sporting development.

“I am sure we would all agree that the Institute of Sports has been doing an excellent job of unearthing talent, as evidenced by the fact that 12 of the 14 National Under-15 team were discovered by INSPORTS and recommended to the Jamaica Cricket Association,” Thorpe pointed out.

“That is the kind of impact we want coming out of these football and netball competitions, which are arguably the biggest age-group competition of their kind in the English-speaking Caribbean,” he added.

“One of our latest stars, Dujuan “Whisper” Richards who signed for top English club Chelsea recently, came up through the INSPORTS football competition, where he was discovered at Harbour View Primary School during the 2015/2016 season.

“These programmes will enable us to bring to the fore, the best talent there is in a competitive environment, in keeping with the INSPORTS mandate of “unearthing talent” in every nook and cranny of Jamaica,” said Thorpe.

Matches will be played on a home and away basis.

Football Play-Offs 2023- 2024

Zone 1: Unity Primary, Corinaldi Primary, Falmouth Primary, Claremont Primary

Zone 2: Little London Primary, Howard Cooke Primary, Clarks Town Primary, Bethel Primary

Zone 3: Brompton Primary, Mandeville Primary, Bethany Primary, Granville Primary

Zone 4: Ocho Rios Primary, Holland Primary, Ballas Valley Primary, New Forest Primary

Zone 5: Denbigh Primary, St Aloysius Primary, Frankfield Primary, Balmagie Primary

Zone 6: Spanish Town Primary, Rousseau Primary, Watsonton Primary, Calabar Primary

Zone 7: Golden Grove Primary, Greater Portmore Primary, Port Antonio Primary, Enfield Primary

Zone 8: Norwick Primary, Port Maria Primary, Lyssons Primary, Oracabessa Primary

Netball Play-Offs 2023-2024

Zone 1: New Hope Primary, Corinaldi Primary, First Hill All Age, Pell River Primary

Zone 2: Savanna-la-mar Primary, Irwin Primary, Clark's Town Primary, Green Island Primary

Zone 3: Brompton Primary, Little London Primary, Bethany Primary, Flankers Primary

Zone 4: Golden Grove Primary, Lime Hall Primary, St Patrick Primary, Mandeville Primary

Zone 5: Spaulding Primary, Black River Primary, Bethabara Primary, Mona Primary

Zone 6: Naggo Head Primary, Half Way Tree Primary, Frankfield Primary, Nazareth Primary

Zone 7: Lyssons Primary, Bridgeport Primary, Seaside Primary, Oracabessa Primary

Zone 8: Buff Bay Primary, Port Maria Primary, White Horses Primary, Clan Carthy Primary