KINGSTON, Jamaica — The inaugural Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) Super Saturday in-season football festival delivered on its promise of high-intensity schoolboy football, giving seeded Manning Cup and daCosta Cup teams valuable competitive preparation ahead of the second round of their respective competitions.

ISSA President Keith Wellington told Observer Online the festival was a success despite a few minor hiccups.

“I think Saturday was by and large a success, just one or two little hiccups, but I think it went according to plan for the most part,” Wellington said. “I haven’t got the reports on all the other venues yet, but based on the initial feedback, the coaches, the players, the response was all positive.”

The festival, which ran from 9:30 am to 6:00 pm, featured 30 scheduled matches involving Manning Cup and daCosta Cup teams. There were 25 wins and four draws.

Manning Cup teams accounted for 15 wins compared to 10 by rural daCosta Cup teams.

Kingston College produced the biggest result, crushing William Knibb Memorial 7-0. Wolmer’s Boys’ hammered Manning’s 5-0 and STATHS blanked Garvey Maceo 4-0.

KC later came from behind to beat host Cornwall College 2-1. Cornwall had earlier drawn 2-2 with Mona High.

Other notable results included Vauxhall edging Ocho Rios 4-3, Wolmer’s defeating Maggotty 2-1, and Calabar getting past Garvey Maceo 3-2.

Manchester High secured a 2-1 win over Tivoli Gardens, Campion edged Dinthill 1-0, and Old Harbour stunned Jamaica College 1-0.

The afternoon session saw Mona beat Ocho Rios 3-2, Charlie Smith edge Maggotty 2-1, and Christiana blank Tivoli Gardens 3-0. Dinthill and Calabar played to a 0-0 draw, while Clarendon and St Jago shared the points 1-1.

Later, Vauxhall beat William Knibb 2-0, St Catherine edged Kemps Hill 2-1, and St George’s beat Old Harbour 3-1. Eltham won 1-0 over STETHS, Manchester defeated Excelsior 2-0, and Jamaica College and Clarendon drew 1-1.

Matches were played over 35 minutes per half with a 10-minute interval, allowing coaches to rotate players and test combinations before the second round.

For Wellington, that was key.

“There are some hiccups that we will look at. If we were to do this again, what we would do differently. But I think it went well and the objectives that we had in mind were met,” he said.

The festival also ensured seeded teams, which received byes into the second round, remained match-sharp instead of facing a long lay-off.

With several big wins and closely contested matches, Super Saturday offered an intriguing glimpse of what lies ahead as the schoolboy season moves into its decisive stages.

— Howard Walker