Lacovia coach takes d’Cup round-of-16 progress in stride

COACH Willard Douglas says he is not surprised that Lacovia High ended a decade-long drought to qualify for the ISSA daCosta Cup football round of 16 after defeating Ferncourt High 4-0 at Drax Hall on Friday. Lacovia were winning a fourth-straight game to climb to 12 points, and cannot be denied a top-two place in the group. They are the first team to advance to the round of 16. It is the first time since the 2015 season that the St Elizabeth-based school has advanced this far. Then, they reached the quarter-finals. Despite their good run so far, which included placing second in their first-round zone behind Munro College and progressing to the second round of the Ben Francis Cup, Douglas told the Jamaica Observer that they are a work in progress. “We are not surprised by how well we are doing, based on the quality of the players we have,” he said. “We are just hoping they can be disciplined enough to maintain the consistency that we want.” The Lacovia coach said they are building a squad that they hope will continue to improve beyond this season. Meanwhile, in scheduled action on Saturday, newly crowned Ben Francis Cup champions Glenmuir High (seven points) will host Old Harbour High (six). At least five more schools, including former daCosta Cup winners Frome Technical and Clarendon College, can secure places in the round of 16 with wins in the penultimate round of games in the second round. Frome Technical, McGrath High, Clarendon College and Manning’s School will hope to extend their flawless runs.

Frome are coming off a massive morale-boosting win over Munro College on Thursday, and will turn their attention to defending champions St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) in a clash between the top two teams in the group. STETHS, coming off a tough 2-1 win over Irwin High on Wednesday, are ahead of Munro College on goal-difference. STETHS will hope Kenoy Banton and Shyon George can solve the Frome Technical defence. Wayne Mullings, Jovaunnie Whyte and Donte Spence are expected to lead the Frome attack. Munro, meanwhile, are expected to rebound from their loss when they play away to Maggotty High. Munro will hope their high-octane attack will get back on track. Munro scored 45 goals in the first round but only four so far through three games. Maggotty, who are coming off a 3-0 win over Holmwood Technical, will be desperate to extend their hopes of advancing to the next round. Both automatic spots could be wrapped up this afternoon if both leaders McGrath High and Ocho Rios High win games against Dinthill Technical and Morant Bay High, respectively. McGrath, who lead with nine points, face third-placed Dinthill Technical who beat Titchfield High 5-0 on Wednesday. McGrath are on a roll, however, scoring 15 goals in their three games. They hit six past Morant Bay High on Wednesday after scoring seven against Titchfield High. Ocho Rios High were held 1-1 by BB Coke in their previous game and will be hoping to get back to winning ways when they host Morant Bay at Drax Hall. FRIDAY’S RESULT Ferncourt 0, Lacovia 4 SATURDAY’S GAMES Ocho Rios vs Morant Bay @ Drax Hall STETHS vs Frome @ STETHS Irwin vs Holmwood @ Irwin Maggotty vs Munro @ Lacovia Community Centre Glenmuir vs Old Harbour @ Glenmuir Central vs Yallahs @ Central Kemps Hill vs Garvey Maceo @ Wembley St Mary High vs Denbigh @ Highgate Community Centre Mile Gully vs Knox @ Mile Gully Dinthill vs McGrath @ Dinthill Titchfield vs BB Coke @ Carder Park Clarendon vs Christiana @ Clarendon Edwin Allen vs Lennon @ Edwin Allen Manchester vs Porus @ Manchester Cornwall vs Manning’s @ Cornwall Brown’s Town vs Rusea’s @ York Castle William Knibb vs St James @ William Knibb