All-island kings STGC vs KC at Aug 29 Roper Cup

Saturday, November 21, 2009 5:05 PM

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Sunday, July 05, 2009

Defending champions St George's College will meet Kingston College at the 45th staging of the Roper Cup, the longest-running football battle between two local high schools, on August 29.

The Roper Cup football festival will see five matches played among age-group players from both schools at the National Stadium East field.

The action is set to begin at 9:00 am with the Under-14 teams of both schools meeting, followed by the 10:30 match involving the Under-16 squads.

The aggregate scores from both matches will determine the overall winner of the George Thompson Trophy, played in honour of the late former KC and Jamaica footballer and coach.

Colombian-born Thompson is KC's most successful coach and was the first local coach to lead a Jamaica team to victory over Mexico in an Olympic qualifier at the National Stadium in 1972.

Jamaica won 1-0 courtesy of a goal by Leonard "Chicken" Mason.

The Under-35 teams from both schools will then meet at noon for the first leg of the Roper Cup decider, which will be split by the match-up for the Pancho Rankine Cup, to be decided by the players aged 35 and over at 2 o'clock.

The mouth-watering final match between last year's Manning Cup and Olivier Shield winners St George's College and Manning Cup quarter-finalists KC in the showdown of present boys at 4 o'clock will close out the day's activities.

St George's won the Roper Cup 3-2 on aggregate in last year's renewal, following a 2-1 win by the present boys and a 1-1 draw in the Under-35 match.