Veteran coach brings renewed belief to Munro College

Western Bureau:

MUNRO COLLEGE might not have won the coveted rural area Inter-Secondary School Sports Association (ISSA) daCosta Cup football title in almost six decades, but they have certainly turned heads this season.

Munro, who won seven daCosta Cup titles in 14 years since its inception in 1950, were looking to end a 57-year drought but stumbled at the quarter-final stage of the competition this season.

The Malvern-based all-boys’ school announced themselves as possible title contenders following wins over preseason title contenders STETHS and reigning Ben Francis Cup champions B.B. Coke High, who they relegated to first-round exits.

Chance of silverware

Veteran head coach, Patrick ‘Jackie’ Walters, who is one of the island’s most successful schoolboy football coaches, is changing the school’s attitude towards the daCosta Cup title and is not ruling out the chance of silverware this season.

“Yes, that’s always a possibility. The aim is always to challenge something,” Walters said.

After suffering a 4-0 loss to Lacovia in their opening game, Munro went on a four-game win streak to book their spot in the quarter-finals of the competition.

However, that is where the road ended for the Malvern boys, who lost their last two games after they had qualified, and failed to raise their intensity levels again.

Munro would end up being pipped to the sole semi-final spot from Group Two by Manning’s High School. Walters, though, believes there is better to come.

“I think the boys responded well,” Walters had said at the end of the first round.

“Losing the first game made them realise that they are much better than what they did. As a result, they just picked themselves up and gave it a good shot.

“We are not quite there yet but with these players, once you put a challenge in front of them, they will rise to the occasion. They have the potential, no doubt about that,” he added.

When asked how much of a difference he believes his experience and pedigree has made, Walters, who has won daCosta Cup titles with Glenmuir High and Clarendon College, as well as Manning Cup titles with Camperdown High, said it contributes.

“Obviously, it is a contributing factor. My input will be of some value but at the same time, it is a synergy by the entire coaching staff. A team has to understand the kind of philosophy that you want to get across to them. Once you are seeing in their performance that they are at least trying what we set out to do, then you are basically on the right track with a little luck,” Walters said.