York Castle go in hunt of first title, STETHS the first hurdle

Western Bureau:

THE ALLURE of winning a schoolboy football title this season is enough to motivate many-time winners St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) and York Castle High School.

In contrast with the storied STETHS, York Castle are going after their first title when the schools take part in the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) Ben Francis Knockout Cup at Drax Hall in St Ann this afternoon.

Omar ‘Rambo’ Wedderburn, coach of STETHS, said they are eager to win a trophy this year and will be going hard from this first game.

The last time STETHS won any form of silverware was in 2015 when they won the daCosta Cup and Ben Francis Knockout double.

“I am looking forward to a very interesting game because York Castle is an attractive team that everyone has as a very good football-playing team. Honestly, any trophy will do for us this year and to win any trophy we have to get past that first game tomorrow. It’s not going to be easy, but we are going out there to play,” Wedderburn said.

Coach of York Castle Vanie Clarke said they are excited and confident about their chances of lifting the first schoolboy title for the school.

The St Ann-based outfit boasts a number of players from the exciting Mt Pleasant Football Academy and have earned the praise of many, who expect them to be genuine contenders.

“We are excited about it. It is the first time that the school will be participating in the Ben Francis Cup. We know that we have been playing good football and have a good team, so it is about refocusing the youngsters after their disappointment of not realising their full potential in the round of 16,” Clarke said.

“We are looking forward to it and [are] quietly confident. STETHS is normally a strong opponent, but we have the right mentality. We will be right up there with the best teams.”

Today’s Games

Cornwall College vs Garvey Maceo at Garvey Maceo

Glenmuir vs Paul Bogle at York Oval

Christiana vs Rusea’s at Collin Miller Sports Complex

York Castle vs STETHS at Drax Hall

All games begin at 3 p.m.*