Tivoli get a case of the blues
JC march into semifinal with dominant showing
Published:Saturday | November 16, 2024 | 12:09 AMOrane Buchanan/Staff Reporter
THIRTY-ONE-TIME MANNING Cup champions Jamaica College (JC) punched their ticket to the semifinal stage of the competition with a 4-0 win over Tivoli at the Ashenheim Stadium yesterday, courtesy of a brace from Jamoy Dennis and strikes from Nashardo Gibbs and Amarlie King.
JC were in a destructive mood, getting their opener in the 12th minute as Dennis capped off a brilliant build-up with an expert finish.
Four minutes later, Tivoli were facing two-goal deficit as Gibbs, in similar fashion to his teammate, calmly provided JC with breathing room early in the encounter.
While Tivoli tried to string together a few passing sequences, JC were again at their throats, making it 3-0 by the 35th minute, Dennis going for raw power this time around to complete his brace.
In the second half, Tivoli through Davonique Gouldbourne, came close to getting their first of the game as his trickery created enough space for a shot which smashed the upright. The warning didn’t have the impact intended and instead prompted another JC surge.
That surge bore fruit in 62nd minute as King easily got by his marker before guiding his shot home.
Raymond Watson, assistant coach of JC, said while he was pleased with making the semifinals, he believes his opponents were much better than they showed on the day.
“It was a very good display. We got some goals, however, I don’t think the scoreline is a true reflection of the Tivoli team. They’re a better team than how they performed and I’m not flattered that we scored the goals. We’ve had a rough season with a lot of injuries but I think we’re getting back the numbers and that is how the quality is coming out,” he said.
Christopher Nicholas, head coach of Tivoli, said while his Manning Cup campaign came to a close yesterday, the team will now shift their focus to the knockout competition.
“The Manning Cup season ends here but we’ll go to the Walker Cup. It was a good season for us and we’ll come again next year. We knew it was going to be tough as Jamaica College were good,” he said.