STATHS, Penwood hyped up for decisive clash

Robert Bailey, Gleaner Writer

An intriguing clash is expected today when former champions St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS) meet Penwood in a crucial match in Group D of their Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA)/Pepsi/Digicel Manning Cup urban area senior schoolboy football competition at STATHS, starting at 3:30 p.m.

The home team, which will be playing their final game of the season, are second in the group on 26 points, three behind early qualifiers and leaders, Norman Manley, who have completed their fixtures with 29 points. Penwood, who have two games remaining, are third on 25 points.

"This is a do-or-die game for us, and so we are definitely looking for a victory tomorrow [today] because only three points can take us through to the next round," said Phillip Williams, coach of STATHS, whose team were beaten 1-0 by their opponents in their previous encounter this season.

"We have improved since they beat us, and we have not lost a game since then," he said. "Once we can get our final passing together and put away our chances we'll be able to come out victorious."

Meanwhile, Eric Williams, technical director of Penwood, who are unbeaten in the competition this season, said: "It is a very crucial game for us because we've not pressed home the advantage that we have had in the last couple of games. But we are expecting our top players to deliver for us against STATHS tomorrow [today].

"We are expecting a strong game from our opponents, but we are very confident that our main players will get the job done for us."