Kingston College Head Coach Vassell Reynolds says his side is battle tested and ready for the challenge against Campion College today in their first-leg encounter of the ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup second round at Jamaica College.

The North Street-based boys, who have been touted as a challenger for the urban area title, finished the group stage unbeaten with nine wins from their 10 games and had one of the best defensive records in the competition as they only conceded three goals.

Their opponents, Campion, impressed in their group as they won seven matches with their only defeats coming against many-time champions St George’s College.

However, Reynolds says he’s confident after seeing his team’s performances this season.

“We have done well albeit a very challenging group with the likes of Hydel, Calabar, Charlie Smith and others. I think the competitiveness of that group would have helped to prepare us for this stage of the competition, so we’re very optimistic and hoping that the boys put their best foot forward,” said Reynolds.

Meanwhile, Kingston Technical’s Head Coach Francis Murray wants to pull off a surprise ahead of their first-leg clash with last season’s beaten finalists St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS).

STATHS topped their group and also had the best defensive record in the competition while also finding the back of the net 48 times in their 10 games.

And despite qualifying as one of the best third-placed teams in the group stage, Murray is expecting a strong showing from his team.

“The boys are in good spirits, they’re elated to be at this level and they think they can go further. We’re in it to win it, we know the potential of STATHS, we know their strike power and we’re gonna respect that. But at the same time, we’re not going to curl up and play dead. We’re not in it to complete the fixture, we’re coming to get something from it.”