Hartley Neita, Contributor
IN THE earlier half of this century, the 20th, the Manning and Sunlight cups for football and cricket, and the Simpson Shield for swimming, were competed for by a small club of secondary schools in Kingston and St. Andrew.
These schools were Jamaica College, Kingston College, St. George's College, Calabar High School and Wolmer's Boys' School. They also competed among themselves for the Perkins Shield, for rifle shooting, lawn tennis, hockey and boxing.
These competitions enjoyed national interest, not only among the past students who never grew old in their fanatical passion for their alma maters, but also in the communities adjacent to the schools.
So, for Jamaica College, there was support from the communities of Matilda's Corner and Papine. Kingston College drew support from Allman Town and Woodford Park. St. George's College enjoyed the support of the Chinese community of downtown Kingston, Rae Town and other neighbourhood suburbs.
Calabar, which was then on Slipe Pen Road, had the following of the Cross Roads, Lyndhurst and nearby districts. Wolmer's drew its support from parts of Woodford Park, Kingston Gardens, Manchester Square and sections of Allman Town.
In addition, these boys schools had their sister schools. Jamaica College and St. Andrew High School. Kingston College and St. Hugh's. Wolmer's Boys and Wolmer's Girls' were natural twins. St. George's and the Roman Catholic Schools of Alpha and Immaculate.
No one in my time knew of Calabar's female affinity.
There was no National Stadium then. Football was played on each other's school grounds, and referees had a difficult job of keeping the spectators off the playing field.
The Manning Cup went around in a circle of these five schools for years. Victory was front-page news and the boys of this exclusive club were national stars who were recruited, even before leaving school, into the prestige clubs of Kingston and Melbourne, in particular.
New club members
Came the late 1950s, however, and new grant-aided schools joined the club. In addition, boys who before had to be content with going into Kingston Technical, Knockalva and Mico after their elementary schooldays were over, were admitted to the club of schools through the annual Common Entrance Examinations.
One by one, these schools began to win the Manning and Sunlight Cups, and the Inter-Scholastic Secondary Schools Track and Field Champion-ships. The trophies went on display in the libraries of Camperdown, Excelsior and Tivoli, to name a few.
This year, it was the Norman Manley Secondary School which took the Manning Cup home again after whipping Kingston College 3-1.
The glory days are over. How art the mighty fallen!
