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George Forbes of the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association.The general consensus coming out of the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA), organisers for the urban area Manning Cup and the rural area daCosta Cup competitions, is that they are satisfied with the staging of the first round of both competitions.
According to George Forbes, competitions officer of the association, apart from a few minor incidents, matches were completed within schedule, and with the knockout component of both divisions coming to an end, they are looking forward to the second round.
"We are satisfied that everything went reasonably well as, apart from a few incidents of crowd invasions, and two verbal-abuse cases against referees, we are quite happy," he said.
One of the incidents Forbes made reference to is the crowd invasion in a match between Jamaica College (JC) and Wolmer's Boys, in which the former's home supporters invaded the field on three occasions to celebrate the scoring of three come-from-behind goals, the last of which came in injury time and allegedly injured the Wolmer's custodian.
Security concerns
Citing security concerns, Wolmer's coach then decided not to continue the match, and ISSA, in their ruling, awarded JC victory with a 2-0 score- line; banned the Wolmer's coach for one game and handed one of his players a one-match suspension. JC's home ground was also put on probation for one year, during which if a similar incident occurs, the venue will be banned.
"We are saying that referees are in charge, and you can't go around, whether you like the decision or not, disrespecting referees," said Forbes. "Schools and coaches need to control their charges, as it is their responsibility," he added.
Another incident which Forbes identified involved a referee in a match between Spaldings High and Edwin Allen, during which it is reported that one of the coaches verbally abused the official. "The matter is being dealt with as we speak, and another disciplinary ruling is expected," Forbes said.
Meanwhile, as it relates to scheduling and formatting of the competitions, Forbes said some coaches had problems with the frequency of matches. However, according to him, ISSA had done their best based on the number of teams they had to accommodate, especially in the daCosta Cup.
Little complaints
"We had little complaints in the Manning Cup as most teams played a maximum of two matches per week (Tuesday and Friday), which far exceeds the minimum of 48 hours between matches which is stipulated by FIFA.
"Where we had problems was in the daCosta Cup, where some teams played two matches per week for two weeks (mostly Wednesdays and Saturdays), and three matches per week for two weeks, primarily because of rescheduling due to the Reggae Boyz matches, and in some instances the weather," said Forbes.
"Having said that, what I think needs to be done is for principals to rethink their stance on changing the format of both competitions, as not only are some of the matches lopsided, but in some instances, it is causing logistical problems.
"If we had a two-tier system, we would not have this situation, as it would be easier for teams to stick to a maximum of two matches per week. The coaches, who understand what is going on the ground, are in favour of a two-tier league, but the principals at the last meeting were not. For it (the proposal) to be to implemented 75 per cent of principals have to support the motion, and that did not take place," he explained.
- Jermaine Lannaman
Non-traditional teams looming large in D-CupAdrian Frater, News Editor
Western Bureau:
After several weeks of intense action, the 2008 ISSA/Pepsi/Digicel daCosta Cup, which started on September 13 with 81 teams divided into 12 zones, is now down to its inter-zone phase, which will feature 24 teams in six groups of four teams each.
In the preliminary round, which saw the top two teams in each zone advancing to the inter-zone and the others bowing out, several top-flight schools dropped out, inclusive of reigning champions Garvey Maceo, which failed to advance from Zone I, falling prey to zone winners Old Harbour and second place Glenmuir.
In addition to Garvey Maceo, other top teams that fell into the eliminated category include several others that once wore the coveted title of daCosta Cup champions. The list includes 1986 and 1988 champions Herbert Morrison Technical, seven-time champions Munro College and nine- time champions Vere Technical.
Rising towards glory
However, while the eliminated former champions were sliding out of contention, several teams without the so-called daCosta Cup pedigree have been steadily rising towards glory. Chief among them is the virtually unknown Lacovia High, which surprised the fancied St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) and Munro to top Zone E.
Other teams that have lifted themselves in the overachieving categories include St James High, who topped Zone A over the likes of former champions Cornwall College and Herbert Morrison; Lennon High, who overshadowed former champions Clarendon College and Vere for Zone H honours, and Old Harbour, who topped Zone I above traditional big guns Glenmuir and Garvey Maceo.
In terms of recent history, the Jackie Walters-coached Glenmuir, who have been in the last three daCosta Cup finals, cannot be slighted. With the tactical prowess of their coach and with quality players such as John Ross Doyley and Nigel Webb, they could well emerge in the latter stages of the competition.
Gifted team
Old Harbour, unbeaten in their preliminary campaign alongside Garvey Maceo and Glenmuir, look a gifted team. With a master tactician in coach Linval Dixon, a former national player; and two gifted goal-getters in Jabar Baker and Dennis Ford, Old Harbour, despite their Ben Francis KO disappointment, do seem to have championship qualities.
Lacovia High, the unbeaten Zone E kingpins, laid to rest any belief that they were pretenders when they knocked the high-riding Rusea's out of the Ben Francis KO. With a team comprising players who have come through the ranks from Under-14, inclusive of no-nonsense defender Oral Grey and wily midfielder Nikoy Smith, Lacovia look to be solid contenders.
St James High, who upstaged Lacovia to qualify for today's Ben Francis KO final, have been having a fantastic season as, in addition to topping Zone A, they are currently enjoying a 13-game unbeaten run. With coach Pastor Hugh Solomon proving to be a smooth tactician and classy goalscorers such as Nicholi Barrett (11), Allan Ottey (10) and skipper Fabian McLarthy (5), St James are definitely the team of the moment.
Showing depth
Dinthill High who lost twice in topping Zone J, have been showing much depth and quality, especially since their Ben Francis KO campaign started. In beating Old Harbour 3-0 to qualify for today's final, the Dinthill team with quality players such as Rajay Bennett, Detroy Perez and Alliste Redding must be harbouring thoughts of emulating their 1979 and 1981 champion teams.
Despite having their sheen rubbed off in the Ben Francis KO loss to Lacovia, Rusea's High, who waltzed through Zone B of the daCosta Cup preliminary round unbeaten, notching eleven wins and a draw in 12 games, are not a team to take lightly, especially if top players Damain Thompson, Rohan Temple and Roydel Moncrieffe live up to expectations.
When the daCosta Cup started in September, The Gleaner picked Glenmuir, Rusea's, Cornwall College and the eliminated Garvey Maceo and Munro College as the five teams to watch, but based on the current situation, St James High and Dinthill must be added to the mix.
