ISSA may host college try-outs for graduating players
High school footballers set to graduate at the end of the current academic year could get another chance to impress overseas college scouts as the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) is contemplating staging try outs early 2026.
With the suspension of both the daCosta Cup and Manning Cup competitions at the round of 16 stage due to Hurricane Melissa, there were some concerns that the graduating players could miss out on scholarship opportunities.
However, President of ISSA, Keith Wellington told the Jamaica Observer that there were ongoing discussions about hosting tryouts.
“We are considering those things in our current deliberations,” he said.
There are a number of tryouts held annually by private groups, mostly in January, and are attended by US college scouts. Additionally, a number of college coaches and scouts attend late season games in the competions, particularly the semi-finals and finals, seeking talented local footballers for their programmes.
Earlier this week, ISSA announced plans to restart the competitionslater this month and also play the Ben Francis and Walker Cup competitions with the ISSA Presidents Cup set to be played in January.
