Tivoli Gardens High School delivered a statement victory on Thursday, defeating Wolmer’s Boys’ 4-2 in an action-packed ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup Zone E showdown. Tivoli's win, led by two goals each from Ryan-Oneil Francis and Kaqummarie McKoy, saw them finish the preliminary round at the top of the group.

Francis opened the scoring in the 12th minute, giving Tivoli an early lead. McKoy doubled their advantage with a well-taken goal in the 24th minute, putting the hosts in control by halftime. Wolmer’s came out strong in the second half, with Daniel Scarlett pulling one back in the 51st minute, injecting hope into the visitors.

However, Tivoli responded emphatically. McKoy netted his second in the 68th minute, followed by Francis’s second in the 75th minute to make it 4-1, putting the game beyond Wolmer’s reach. Scarlett managed a late consolation goal in the 82nd minute, scoring his second of the match, but it wasn’t enough to prevent Tivoli from securing a crucial 4-2 win.

With the victory, Tivoli Gardens leapfrogged Wolmer’s to finish atop Zone E with 27 points. Wolmer’s, who finished two points behind Tivoli, secured second place. St Jago High, meanwhile, wrapped up third place with 19 points after a dominant 4-0 win over Denham Town, who finished in fourth with seven points.

Other Results from Thursday’s Manning Cup Matches:

Kingston College and Campion College battled to a thrilling 2-2 draw, a result that saw both teams share the points in their final preliminary round match.
St Jago High comfortably defeated Denham Town 4-0, securing third place in Zone E behind Tivoli Gardens and Wolmer’s Boys’.

As the Manning Cup progresses to the next stage, Tivoli Gardens' momentum from topping Zone E makes them a strong contender, while Wolmer’s and other teams will look to regroup and push further in the competition.

Jonathan Grant High took the early lead in Zone B of the 2024 ISSA Manning Cup thanks to a 9-0 hammering of Gaynstead High at the Papine High School field on Monday.

The 1999 Walker Cup champions lead defending Manning Cup title holders Mona High by two goals on goal difference after the first round of matches in Zone B.

In the other Zone B game on Monday, three-time Manning Cup champions Charlie Smith defeated Tarrant High 4-0 at Jacisera Park.

In Zone C, 16-time winners Kingston College had a disappointing start to their season with a 2-2 draw against Penwood High at Maverley Field.

Campion College took the early lead in Zone C thanks to a 4-0 win over Cumberland High at Cumberland while Jose Marti scored a big win of their own, 5-2 over Meadowbrook at Meadowbrook, to slot in at second on goal difference.

Tivoli Gardens High took the early lead in Zone D thanks to a 4-1 win over Denham Town High at Tivoli.

10-time Manning Cup winners Wolmer’s Boys also opened their season with a win, 3-1 over St. Jago High at St. Jago.

St. Mary’s College and Edith Dalton James High played out a 1-1 draw in the day’s other Zone D encounter.

Famed schoolboy footballer Dennis ‘Den Den’ Hutchinson has died after a prolonged battle with an undisclosed illness at the age of 63, his family confirmed to Sportsmax.TV Wednesday.

Camperdown and Tivoli Gardens High have both been removed from the remainder of the Manning Cup after it was found that they both used ineligible players.

As both teams were in Group B, they will be replaced in the quarterfinal round by the third and fourth-placed teams from the group, Excelsior High and STATHS.

The new list of teams advancing to the quarterfinal round now reads: Jamaica College, Kingston Technical, Excelsior High, STATHS, Kingston College, Mona High, Charlie Smith, and St. Catherine High.

JC, Mona, STATHS, and St, Catherine High will be in Group 1 while KC, Excelsior, Charlie Smith, and Kingston Tech will be in Group 2.

Each team will play each other once and the top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals.

The eight teams that will be involved in the Manning Cup quarterfinal round have been set as group stage play concluded on Monday.

Jamaica College and Kingston Technical advanced from Group A as the top two teams while Charlie Smith advanced as one of the two best third-placed finishers after scoring a 1-0 win over St. George’s College in their rescheduled game at Stadium East.

Camperdown and Tivoli were the only two teams to advance from Group B while Kingston College, Mona High, and St. Catherine High advanced to the quarters from Group C to complete the field.

KC beat St. Catherine 2-1 to finish as group winners with a perfect 15 points from five games.

Mona finished second and St. Catherine advanced as the other best third-placed team.

The Manning Cup quarterfinal round is currently scheduled to get underway on Saturday, December 10^th.