STGC ready for slugfest with North Street rivals KC
KINGSTON, Jamaica – Brian Burkett, Adrian Reid and Joel Brown have a job on their hands. Their task is to stop the juggernaut of their rivals and neighbours Kingston College (KC) when St George’s College (STGC) meet them in part one of the Battle of the North Street giants, tomorrow.
Burkett is the team’s leading scorer, Reid scores every time he is on the pitch, while Brown is the team’s leader. The experienced trio will have to provide direction for the team that is second in Zone A of the ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup against the zone leaders KC, who are seven games unbeaten this season.
STGC have recovered from their blip earlier this season where they went and lost to Waterford High by three goals to two. In the return leg at Winchester Park, the “Light Blues” played their opponents off the park and won 3-nil to reestablish themselves as one of the group favourites.
Last season was a season of learning for this STGC team, and those lessons are starting to bear fruit as they now sit just three points behind KC on 18 after six wins from seven games. STGC did not make it out of the first-round last season.
They have rediscovered the way to goal, scoring 30 while conceding just seven and with such a great goal difference and the points already accumulated, look a shoo-in for at least second place in the group, with three matches to go.
But for all that they have done so far, it is the highly anticipated battles between themselves and KC that will be the focus over the next few match days.
The teams will meet twice in a week, with the first meeting tomorrow at the Stadium East Field set to be about more than just about bragging rights.
Burkett has scored in six of the seven games and has tallied 10 goals so far. His impact for STGC cannot be understated and his experience is certainly coming to the fore. He is indeed their biggest weapon despite his stature, and he has grown in the roles of playmaker and goal scorer.
Kerr missed the first game against Waterford but has scored in the six others. He is a goal-a-game man for STGC, and his coach Neville “Bertis” Bell will hope that the run continues.
Brown has not made a mark on the score sheet just yet, but his control of the game from the middle of the park for his team has allowed his other teammates to do their job. The trio and definitely the core that makes the Knights tick. They will need to report in the right frame of mind if they are to end the KC unbeaten run that stretches back to last season when they went unbeaten to lift the title.
This mega clash will be shown live on SportsMax and if both teams perform at their best, this game could be an instant classic.