Having been kicked out of the ISSA/Wata Manning Cup, Tivoli Gardens High will be looking to regain the Walker Cup they last won in 2022 to end the schoolboy football season with a trophy.

Tivoli Gardens saw their Manning Cup hopes dashed when they lost 3-2 to Excelsior High and failed to advance to the last eight of the competition.

After going 3-0 down to Excelsior High, Tivoli Gardens showed their quality and rallied with two late goals that showed they can compete with the best in the competition.

But just like in 2022, Tivoli Gardens, which last won the Manning Cup in 1999, turns its focus on the lesser or second-tier Walker Cup crown.

Assistant Head Coach Lance daCosta said all is not lost as they hunt their sixth Walker Cup title following victories in 1978, 1994, 1996, 2005 and 2022.

“That would provide some motivation for the boys for the rest of the season,” said DaCosta, as his team sat on the field having a post-mortem with Head Coach Christopher Nicholas.

Excelsior raced into a 3-0 lead with goals from Terrence Williams (5th) and Kimarly Scott (33rd, 49th) and missed a penalty by Sanjay Sinclair.

But Tivoli Gardens showed character and staged a late fightback as Jeremy Forbes and Horace Morgan netted in the 74th and 90th minutes and had Excelsior on the back foot, looking nervous in the dying minutes.

With the Walker Cup set to start in a few weeks’ time, daCosta said it’s back to the drawing board for Tivoli Gardens.

“Tomorrow, we’re just going to let them rest, rehydrate themselves and just reset their mind and then we’ll go out there and try to focus on the Walker Cup,” DaCosta said. “It’s a good tournament. It can be a win. So, it’s up for grabs and we’re a good team with good qualities,” he pointed out.

It has been 26 years since Tivoli Gardens last tasted success in the Manning Cup and in 2022, they ended a 17-year drought in the Walker Cup. Now the orange and black-clad boys from West Kingston will certainly be one of the favourites to lift the Walker Cup.