BY PAUL A REID

Observer writer

MONTEGO BAY, St James — Defending champions St James High will lead the charge for a place in next weekend’s final of the ISSA/Pepsi/Digicel daCosta Cup schoolboys’ football competition today when they take on first time semi-finalists Manchester High at Jarrett Park at 3:00 pm.

At the St Elizabeth Technical Sports Complex in Santa Cruz, two-time winners St Elizabeth Technical (STETHS) and 2007 champions Garvey Maceo High will clash to decide the other finalist.

The teams qualified for today’s semi-finals after placing first or second in the quarter-finals, which ended last weekend and all are reporting they are ready for today’s games and confident they will advance to next Saturday’s final.

While St James High and Garvey Maceo, winners of their respective groups in the quarterfinals, should start as favourites to advance to

the final, STETHS and Manchester High should not be counted out to produce the goods when it matters most.

While saying they are ready to play anywhere they are sent by ISSA, Manchester High’s Barry Watson thinks the organisers should in the future make an effort to use venues that won’t give any team

an advantage.

He was responding to a question about playing St James High at the field they used as their home field and said “all four teams in the semis worked hard to be where they are and you just can’t give two an extra advantage,” adding that STETHS would also have home advantage over Garvey Maceo.

The contention over the venue aside, Watson, who is making the trip to the semi-finals for the second time after taking Holmwood Technical to the last four several years ago, said the objective of his team since they started camp in July was to make it to the final.

The Manchester High team will come up against statistically the best defence left in the competition, having conceded just two goals in the last six games and could be tough to break down today.

Pastor Hugh Solomon, who coaches the St James team, said while they had some “minor injury worries” he will have his full squad to choose from for the game.

While saying he has seen “only bits and pieces” of the Manchester High team this season, says he expects Manchester High to “come

at us”.

Roshane Reid leads the St James team with five goals in their last four games, while midfielder Ricardo Morris and striker Allan Ottey are both on three each.

After upsetting Ben Francis KO champions Glenmuir High in a must-win game last week, the Andrew Edwards-coached STETHS have sent the warning that they are not to be overlooked.

They have twice scored improbable wins to advance, beating Manchester in a must-win game at the end of the Inter-zone round and

then last week, both by

2-0 margins.

This game will see the top two scorers in the competition in action, Garvey Maceo’s Kenroy Thomas and STETHS Deshorn Brown both with seven goals each.

STETHS, who were last in the semi-finals 10 years ago, will be without the suspended Kemar Morgan, while Tajay Higgins will need at least another two weeks to get over a quadriceps injury.

Edwards said his charges were upbeat and ready for the challenge. “Every time we have been asked, we have produced and these boys have shown they can respond when their backs are against the wall.”