JC, STATHS renew Manning Cup rivalry
Published:Tuesday | December 14, 2021 | 12:08 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
THE CIRCUMSTANCES may be different, but St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS) head coach Philip Williams and Jamaica College (JC) head coach Davion Ferguson are both expecting a fierce battle, similar to years past, when they face each other today in their ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup quarter-final Group One football match at Stadium East at 1 p.m.
It will be the first time in two years that the two have faced each other, after their 2019 clashes that defined that year’s season.
That year, STATHS dispatched the ‘Dark Blues’ in the final game of their quarter-final group, which put them into the semi-finals as group winners. However, JC would get revenge when the teams met again in the final, winning the title on penalties, their first under head coach Ferguson in his first season. It was also the second time in three years that STATHS and JC faced each other in a final.
Two years removed, the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting hiatus may have changed some aspects of this truncated season. However, Williams said that he expects the same fierce battle today in what is turning out to be a fierce rivalry.
“We haven’t played football in two seasons,” Williams said. “Both teams are filled with youngsters that are inexperienced. Baring that, JC is a little bit more mature in terms of the players. But these are the matchups that we look forward to as a young programme.
“You want to play against the best to see where you are. And definitely, the same amount of intensity that was shown in the past three seasons will be shown when we meet again.”
DANGEROUS FORCE
It is a similar sentiment by Ferguson, who says that in the midst of STATHS’ rebuild of their squad and their fortuitous entry into the quarter-final round, they are still the dangerous force that resulted in them meeting in two of the last three finals.
“I don’t think they have [anything] to lose,” Ferguson said. “I think what STATHS has done over the years, they are expected to be in this stage of the competition, at least. I think that is, for them, an added incentive.
“When I saw them in the first round, I believed that they are better than where they finished in the table. I think they have quality, and I think that STATHS is trying to rebuild their programme. I think that they are trying to put the best foot forward.”
While a new lease on life has been beneficial for Williams, he is not worried about any talks on redemption from that Manning Cup final defeat two years ago, but more focused on the present and what they can do to keep their improbable run going.
“It’s never personal for me,” Williams said. “Every year, we prepare a new set of players, and it is about the players’ development more than anything else that they do well.”
Omar Laing will be the main threat for STATHS, having scored nine goals so far this season, while JC will be banking on their captain, Duncan McKenzie, and Tarick Ximines. In the second game of the Stadium East double-header, St Catherine High will face Mona at 3 p.m., with both looking to rebound after their opening-game defeats.
Today’s games at Stadium East
STATHS vs Jamaica College at 1 p.m.
St Catherine vs Mona High at 3 p.m.