MONTEGO BAY, St James

Pastor Hugh Solomon has had a change of heart and will stay on as coach of the St James High team in next year’s daCosta Cup schoolboys’ football competition, if they are allowed to take part, he said.

Solomon had earlier last week expressed uncertainty as to whether he wanted to return to the Montego Bay institution after an ugly brawl that ended their ISSA/Pepsi/Digicel daCosta Cup Inter-Zone game against Rusea’s at Jarrett Park, two Saturdays ago.

St James High trailed 0-4 and were down to eight players after referee Kevin Morrison sent off three players, including captain John Barrett, all in the second half, when a fight started and the game was eventually called off.

The school is awaiting a summons from the Inter-Secondary School Sports Association (ISSA) disciplinary committee and Solomon said they had written a report on what transpired, but had not submitted as yet.

He said his staying on would be dependent on what decisions are taken at that meeting.

Last week, Solomon said he had met with the school’s principal, Joseph Williams, and based on their discussions he had decided to stay on. Solomon said a number of the boys had apologised to him personally and expressed their regret at what transpired and several members of the staff at St James High had spoken to him and asked him to reconsider his decision to leave.

Anthony ‘Follies’ Williams, the coach at Rusea’s, he said, had spoken to him soon after the incident on Saturday and advised him he should not be discouraged by what had happened.

Solomon, who was in his first season as coach of the team, had told Observer West earlier in the week that he was “still embarrassed by the situation and want to distance myself from that kind of violence as it is not what I represent”.

Solomon, who is also the chaplain of the team, had said he wanted to remain in some capacity where he would be able to work with the players, some of whom he described as “time bombs, just waiting to explode”.