George’s Cup celebrates 10th season this weekend
Following a two-year break due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the George’s Cup makes a return this year, with the 10th staging taking place today and tomorrow at Winchester Park.
The George’s Cup forms part of a plethora of preseason tournaments that provide high school players and coaches with valuable competitive action in preparation for the Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) Manning Cup and DaCosta Cup competitions between the months of September and December.
This year’s Manning Cup and DaCosta Cup seasons are scheduled to begin on Saturday, September 10.
At the George’s Cup this year, hosts St George’s College (STGC) will be joined by William Knibb High, B B Coke High, and St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS).
All four schools will receive prize money, with the winning school pocketing $100,000 at the end of the two-day tournament.
Event organiser and STGC’s Head Coach Neville “Bertis” Bell is delighted that the tournament is able to again take its place on the footballing calendar.
“It’s great to have the tournament back. We look forward to it every year but, unfortunately, because of the pandemic, we never had it for the last two years,” he said.
Bell underlined that the tournament is more than just a friendly event as it provides him and his counterparts with significant opportunities.
“It’s close enough to the [start of the] season for us to take it seriously, and it gives me a chance to look at some players that I might not necessarily be sure of,” he noted.
The games to be played on Saturday are STATHS versus BB Coke at 2:00 pm, with STGC and William Knibb locking horns at 4:00 pm.
On Sunday, STATHS will oppose William Knibb at 2:00 pm, while STGC will face BB Coke in the final game at 4:00 pm.
The teams will go to sudden death penalties, if it is required to decide games, and teams will be awarded two points for a win on penalties. Three points will be awarded for an outright win.
Previous winners are Wolmer’s Boys’, Jamaica College, and the National Under-17 team, while hosts STGC are defending champions.