Booted!
FORMER champions Camperdown High and Tivoli Gardens High schools were yesterday booted from the 2021/2022 Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA)/Digicel Manning Cup football competition for using ineligible players.
According to a release from the organisers yesterday, the schools used the ineligible players throughout the first phase of the competition and thus all games played have been ruled null and void.
“Kindly note that games played by both Camperdown High and Tivoli gardens High have been ruled null and void as both schools were deemed to have used ineligible players throughout the competition,” stated a section of the release.
It went on to list Jamaica College, Mona High, St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS) and St Catherine High as the teams to contest Group One of the quarter-finals, while Excelsior High, Kingston College, Kingston Technical High and Charlie Smith High are the teams to contest Group Two.
Camperdown High, winners in 1978, 1979 and 1982, played unbeaten to amass 17 points and top Group B ahead of Tivoli Gardens High, winners in 1976 and 1999, on 13 points in the preliminary phase.
The intervention of the organisers to disqualify both teams has left Excelsior High and STATHS as the automatic replacements, as they had finished third and fourth, respectively, in Group B with 12 points, with Excelsior enjoying the better goal difference.
Another team to benefit from the expulsions is St Catherine High, who finished third in Group C behind Kingston College and Mona High and thus advanced as one of the two best third-placed teams, alongside Charlie Smith High.
The quarter-final round begins on Friday with Group One action when STATHS oppose St Catherine High at 1:00 pm before Jamaica College take on Mona High two hours later at Stadium East.
On Saturday, Group Two action comes to the fore when Excelsior High oppose Kingston Technical at 1:00 pm, ahead of the Kingston College vs Charlie Smith clash two hours later. Both games will be played at Stadium East.