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CC derby for d'Cup crown

Published:Wednesday | November 21, 2018 | 12:00 AMKavarly Arnold/Gleaner Writer
Nicque Daley of Clarendon College (second left) dribbles past Dinthill High School's Karim Bryan leaving him unbalanced during the semi-finals of the ISSA/WATA daCosta Cup at the Montego Bay Sports Complex, yesterday. Clarendon College won 4-0.

The argument around which of the two prominent 'CC'-initialed schools is more deserving of the 'Real CC' moniker has raged on among Jamaicans for decades.

That dispute may never truly be settled, but the debate will enter its latest chapter when the St James-based Cornwall College and their bitter foes, Clarendon College, meet in the final of the ISSA/WATA daCosta Cup next Saturday. This after both CCs earned contrasting victories over Frome and Dinthill, respectively, in semi-final action at the Montego Bay Sports Complex yesterday.

A second-half burst saw Clarendon College record a commanding 4-0 win over Dinthill in the first game of the double-header before Champions Cup finalists Cornwall College advanced 4-2 on penalties over Frome after a 0-0 scoreline in the Second City.

Despite a dominant first half from Dinthill, who created a number of solid opportunities for themselves, neither team was able to break the deadlock in the opening half of a gripping encounter. However, Clarendon came out on the front foot in the second half, and in the 55th minute, hitman Nicque Daley gave the central Jamaica-based team the lead. Ricardo McIntosh extended that advantage for the seven-time rural area champions in the 61st minute as last year's beaten finalists began to flex their muscles.

Things went from bad to worse for Dinthill when Akeem Mullings was shown a red card in the 73rd minute. Four minutes later, Daley added his second before Javel Ellis dribbled through the entire Dinthill defence to put the icing on the cake in the 85th minute.

 

Effective team talk

 

Lenworth 'Lenny' Hyde, coach of Clarendon College, said a team talk at half-time was enough to get his boys settled after surviving a dominant Dinthill first half.

"Good second half. The Dinthill team high pressed us in the first half with a lot of intensity. We didn't handle that well as we kept losing composure, and we were not playing out from the back as we should. However, I spoke to them at half-time, told them to enjoy the moment, and I think they did that. Nicque Daley set the tone with an early goal in the second half, and from that point, we were more relaxed and confident. And once we are confident like that, we play good football," said Hyde.

The goals were lacking in the Cornwall College-Frome Technical encounter, but it was certainly full of excitement as both teams traded chances in a tense contest. Cornwall College were particularly wasteful, especially in the latter stages of the game, but they held their nerve in the penalty shoot-out to book a spot in the final and continue their hunt for their 13th hold on the title, and a double coup this year.

Dean Weatherly, coach of Cornwall College, said he was proud to be in another final despite a relatively poor performance on the night.

"It was a lacklustre game for us. I think we were flat, but at the end of the day, the defensive aspect of the game stood up for us, which we have been depending on all season, so we have to give God thanks for that. Now, we just have to get back to the drawing board, look back at the tape to see where we went wrong, and decide from there," said Weatherly.

The final will be played at the same venue next Saturday.