St Catherine squeeze into Manning Cup final four

IT WAS jubilation for St Catherine High School and their fans yesterday as they booked their spot in the semi-finals of the ISSA Manning Cup after playing out an intense 3-3 draw with Excelsior High at Stadium East.

St Catherine secured their passage as the draw means they finish second in Group B with four points while Excelsior finishes at the foot of the table with two.

Anthony Patrick, head coach of St Catherine, applauded his players for the hard-fought draw against a quality opponent.

“I think they really fought hard for this,” he said after the match.

“I must say it was a very, very tough one today for us. We kept scoring but we kept letting Excelsior back in the game, but they are youngsters and that’s just how the football goes. We just have to now regroup and come back for the semi-finals.”

It was Excelsior who opened the scoring in the match through a well-taken effort from Kivann Salmon in the 15th minute of play, but were pegged back just a minute later as Tevin Grey equalised for St Catherine with a volley across the face of goal.

Grey would complete a first-half brace in the 27th minute, giving St Catherine the lead heading into the break.

Kimarly Scott, Excelsior’s talisman this season, would make his presence felt, scoring his first of the afternoon with a striker’s finish from inside the box to equalise just past the hour mark.

St Catherine would once again restore their lead when an expertly timed run from Nathel Ellis beat Excelsior’s offside trap, allowing him to toe the ball around the goalkeeper into an empty net.

Scott would salvage a point for Excelsior minutes from the full-time whistle, showing his pedigree inside the box, volleying home on a half-turn to complete his brace.

In the other game of the group, Hydel High maintained their lead atop the group to qualify to the semi-finals when they held Campion College to a 1-1 draw at the Spanish Town Prison Oval.

Campion, who needed a win to advance to the semi-finals, had opened the scoring in the contest but saw their final-four ambitions slip through their grasp after a late equaliser from the Devon Anderson-led Hydel team.

The result means Campion and Excelsior will contest the quarter-final of the ISSA Walker Cup knockout competition.

Yesterday’s results

Excelsior High 3-3 St Catherine High

Hydel High 1-1 Campion College