As they prepare to contest the quarter-final round of the Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association Manning Cup for the first time since 2016, Linval Dixon, coach of Haile Selassie, says hard work and dedication are key factors which have contributed to the team’s success in the competition.

Haile Selassie, one of the surprise teams in schoolboy football this year, have been in excellent form. They created a massive upset when they knocked out seven-time champions Excelsior in their round-of-16, two-way tie.

The reward for the 2-1 aggregate success against Excelsior is a Group Two draw in the quarter-finals alongside Jamaica College, St Andrew Technical High School and Wolmer’s Boys’.

“We have a very small, young team, a very inexperienced team, but they are hungry for success and they are hungry in wanting to do well this season. The commitment and hard work have been the driving force in them getting to this stage of the competition,” Dixon, who was a member of the Reggae Boyz team that participated in the France 1998 Fifa World Cup Finals.

“The sky’s the limit for them because they have worked hard for this, and hopefully, they do better in the quarter-finals. And, of course, it is a plus just being in the quarter-finals for the first time in a long time, but we are always hungry to achieve,” he said.

The coach said that his players’ commitment to academics has played a vital role in their performance on the field because they now have a better understanding of the game.

“Discipline has played a very key role in their success this far because we are committed to being disciplined both on and off the field of play and we are committed to doing our schoolwork,” said Dixon.

“It is very important for these youngsters to go to classes and get an education. I believe that they understand what they have to do and discipline and hard work is always a good thing for Haile Selassie,” he said.

Jahali Lawrence is Haile Selassie’s leading goal-scorer this season with six goals. Joshua Dewar, Dimitri Burton, Kyle Williams and Rushane Valentine are some of the other major players for the team.

“We will come up against Jamaica College, STATHS and Wolmer’s and these are good teams, but we are ready for the task and therefore we will be going out there in every game to do our best,” Dixon stated.

Dixon hailed the support from the fans in the surrounding Selassie Gardens community in south St Andrew.

“The community is definitely behind us and I must commend them for following the team and supporting the team and cheering us,” he said.

But, of course, we would have loved some support from our past students in high places because we are doing some great things here with the little resources that we have and of course any help is always a plus for us,” the former Jamaica central defender added.