Eltham coach says winning titles not the priority
Last season’s finalists Hydel target second-straight victory over Dunoon Park
Eltham High School will be seeking their seventh-straight victory in the 2024 Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association/Digicel Manning Cup competition when they host Clan Carthy in a Zone A encounter in Spanish Town this afternoon.
The Gregory Allen-coached Eltham, who have been having an outstanding season so far, lead the Zone A with maximum 18 points. They are followed by Hydel High on 15, Dunoon Park Technical and Clan Carthy High on six each and Ardenne High on three.
Eltham, the winners of the Walker Cup in 2006, are the only team in the competition this year not to have conceded a goal. On the other hand, they have scored 29 times.
Eltham, who have already booked a spot in the second round of the competition, is coming off an easy 2-0 victory over Dunoon Park in their last game.
Allen said he is not putting his boys under any undue pressure this season because once they do their best, then he will be satisfied with that.
“I am not looking at titles because I just want for my youngsters to work hard and wherever it takes us I am going to be grateful for that.
“Six wins straight without conceding a goal, that speaks volumes. But for me as a coach, nothing surprises me once my youngsters are working,” he said.
“Once you reach the second round, it is always going to be tough and so we just have to condition our youngsters and let them be in the frame of mind that greater challenges are coming and we are preparing them for that,” Allen added.
He said the coaching staff has been working assiduously to ensure that the players are mentally prepared to deal with whatever challenges they may encounter when they get to the next phase of the tournament.
“One of the things that we are trying to do is to see how best we can motivate these youngsters and let them see a different side to it than just football. So far they have been doing well and I just hope that this will continue for us for the rest of the season,” said Allen, who is also the vice-principal of Eltham.
Hydel, last year’s beaten finalists, will be looking to record their second-straight victory over Dunoon Park when both teams clash at the Homestead Community Centre.
The Devon Anderson-coached Hydel defeated their opponents 4-1 in their previous meeting this season.
