Frome Technical celebrate the Pepsi/Sports Plus Rural Area schoolboy football daCosta Cup title at Jarrett Park yesterday. They beat Titchfield High 1-0. (See story on Page 54) (Photo: Conroy Walker)

MONTEGO BAY -- Shane Anderson's 60th-minute strike gave Frome Technical High of Westmoreland their first hold on the coveted ISSA Pepsi/Sports Plus daCosta Cup, the symbol of rural schoolboy football supremacy, at Jarrett Park yesterday.

The lone goal enabled Frome to turn back the strong challenge of Titchfield High, the pride of Portland and eastern Jamaica, who were also seeking their first daCosta Cup title.

Frome were not only winning the prestigious Cup for the first time but became the first Westmoreland school to accomplish such a feat.

Titchfield defender Joel Murray (left) intercepts Alphanso Lewis of Frome Technical in the daCosta Cup schoolboy football final at Jarrett Park yesterday. ((Photo: Conroy Walker)

The game started briskly as both teams sought the early ascendancy. Frome momentarily dictated the early proceedings, looking the more purposeful. They did not dominate for long though, as the boys from the east gradually got into stride and threatened to take the spoils to Portland.

The yellow and gold clad Titchfield must be cursing their luck after letting Frome off the hook on several occasions as they applied numerous unanswered attacks with nothing to show at the end of the day.

After 33 minutes, Anthony Bradshaw should have sent Titchfield ahead but he shot skywards from inside the box. A minute later he forced the Frome goalkeeper to carry off a brilliant save to deny his spectacular bicycle kick.

Titchfield continued to dominate the first half with slick passing and ball possession until referee Howard Stennett blew his whistle to signal the break.

On the resumption, Frome took complete control of the game. Two minutes into the second half, Alphanso Lewis drove one menacingly close to the upright, sending shivers through the Titchfield camp.

Thirteen minutes later, Frome were awarded a freekick on the right flank, halfway into the Titchfield half.

Hard-working Errol Bryan sent a high ball over for Adrian, who soared over the heads of defenders and nodded home to a tumultuous roar from the Westmoreland supporters.

The Boysie Nicholson-coached boys at this stage scented blood and moved in for the kill, launching attack after attack against the exhausted boys from Portland. In the end the one goal was all they had but it was also all they needed.

Winning coach Nicholson was a happy man as he spoke with journalists after the game.

"I am feeling very good to come out victorious... I expected a good performance from the boys," he said.

He attributed the team's poor first-half showing to the wizardry of his opposing number. "They tricked us in the first half. When we played them in the Ben Francis Trophy match, they had two wide players and one in the middle. This time they came with two inside and it worried us a bit. Our strategy was to get the ball to the flank and get in passes," Nicholson added.

His second-half strategy was to shut out the dangerous duo, Bradshaw and Denroy Wilson.

A dejected Titchfield coach, Andrew Edwards said: I am very, very disappointed in not taking home the title this evening. As you could see we had a tremendous amount of support here. We played well in the first half but fell away terribly in the second half."

The winning team and their jubilant supporters celebrated extensively after the game. Among the supporters was former minister of water and housing, Dr Carl Blythe, who is the member of parliament of the constituency from which the victors hail.

"I am elated. This is indeed a historic moment for Westmoreland in general, but certainly for Frome Technical and it is a fitting gift for us to take back to put in the new school (block) which should open at any time now ...," Blythe said.

"I guess we have to say to the prime minister (PJ Patterson) who is an MP of Westmoreland that this is a gift for you. All we need now is a stadium at Frome," he said.

The curtain-raiser, the Under-16 championship final, was won by another Westmoreland school, Mannings, who defeated another Portland school, Happy Grove, 2-0.

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