With just four days to before the start of the ISSA/Manning Cup competition, coach of defending champions Jamaica College (JC) Davion Ferguson said his team is bracing itself for a very tough opening game against reigning Walker Cup winners Tivoli Gardens in their Group B encounter in what is expected to be a mouthwatering showdown at the National Stadium. Match time is 6:00 pm.

JC, who won their 31st title last season, are expecting a tough challenge from all opponents this season, and Ferguson is quite aware.

“To be honest, I have not seen Tivoli, but I know that they have a very good team because last year they won the Walker Cup Knockout competition, which is an achievement for them. I know that they have injected some new players into their programme over the last 12 to 18 months and it is actually bearing serious fruits now,” Ferguson said.

“I think any game against Tivoli, and especially the opening game, will be a difficult one and it will be a challenging one, but it is not something that we are not too perturbed about. We are basically focusing on ourselves and trying to get our preparation right for the duration of the season and not just for one game,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

Ferguson pointed out that they have retained 13 members of their squad which defeated St Andrew Technical High School on penalties in the final of last year’s competition, four of which were regular starters in the team.

He also shared that this season’s competition is going to be much different compared to last year because all the teams have been strengthened, setting the foundation for an exciting this year.

“I think that every season brings new opportunities, new hope and I think that with less than four days away before the start of the competition, we are in a good place,” he said. “We are trying to get the preparation in place which will help us to do well for the entire season and not just Saturday,” Ferguson said.

“Overall, it is a new-look squad, it is a changed squad, and from the starting group, I think there are four players,” he said.

Ferguson said that JC have assembled a very talented squad of players for this year’s competition, triggering confidence that they will do well throughout the tournament.

“A lot of our players would have been getting minutes, whether last year with us or at the Under-16 level or other competitions that were playing throughout the country.

“We also have a few young national Under-15 players who would have equipped themselves well and would have made a name for themselves, and so those are the players that we really have and those are the players that we will depend on,” Ferguson stated.

Meanwhile, the other teams in the group are Cumberland, Kingston Technical, Meadowbrook and Spanish Town.