Perfect Mona in final eight

Mona High continued their unbeaten march in the 2024 ISSA Manning Cup when they blanked St George’s College (STGC) 3-0 yesterday at the Ashenheim Stadium to advance to the quarter-finals of the competition.

Mona left nothing to chance in the final match day of the second round- as they ended on top of the group with a maximum nine points from their three games played.

The result sees them topping Group One ahead of Campion College, who also advanced to the quarter-finals with six points in second place.

STGC, third with three points, and St Jago High, fourth place without a point, will contest the first round of the Walker Cup.

Mona’s coach Kyle Butler said the win was another step in the right direction for his team as they seek to defend their urban schoolboy football title.

“We’re definitely proud of what we’ve managed to achieve for Mona,” Butler said after the match.

“Three years ago, we never would have imagined this for the school, but now we have a lot of pride in the school, in our players and in our programme. We’re continuously developing players and we are extremely confident going into the next round of the competition.”

Butler said the team has continued to improve on a yearly basis, and their results on the field have reflected their stature.

Since their partnership with Phoenix Academy, Mona have become a driving force in schoolboy football.

Having claimed the Manning Cup title last year, Butler is confident this will be the year they add to their repertoire with the Champions Cup and Olivier Shield titles as well.

“There are no concerns. We have gears that we keep going into and the boys will be mentally ready as well. We’ve won this competition before, so the boys have the know-how and I feel we manage games much better,” he explained.

“This is the year for us, especially if you look at our trajectory. Last year, we won the Manning Cup but missed out on the Champions Cup and Olivier Shield. This is the year for us to win all competitions and try to be undefeated.”

In the other matches, Hydel High booked their spot in the quarter-finals as they clipped Wolmer’s Boys’ 1-0 at the Spanish Town Prison Oval.

The win puts them second in Group Three with six points behind Kingston College (KC), who also finished with six points.

KC were clipped 1-0 by STATHS in their final game of the second round as they slumped to their first defeat of the season.

STATHS and Wolmer’s, by virtue of finishing third and fourth in the group, will contest the first round of the Walker Cup.

Yesterday’s results

St Jago 0-1 Campion College

Mona 3-1 St George’s College

Hydel 1-0 Wolmer’s Boys

Kingston College 0-1 STATHS

Today’s games

Excelsior vs Jonathan Grant - Excelsior

Eltham vs Tivoli - Eltham

Charlie Smith vs Calabar - Anthony Spaulding Sports Complex

St Catherine vs Jamaica College - Spanish Town Prison Oval

All games kick off at 3 p.m.