Waterford stay on course for Walker Cup

Robert Bailey, Gleaner Writer

Waterford High, led by a second-half brace from Romain Gibbons, thrashed Cumberland 4-0 yesterday in their Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) Manning Cup urban area schoolboy football match, to move one step closer towards qualification for the Walker Cup KO competition yesterday.

The Floyd Coke-coached Waterford, which also qualified for the second round of the Manning Cup competition, are tied atop Group A standings on 25 points with Jamaica College (JC).

Both teams are scheduled to meet tomorrow in their final match of the season, to decide the winners of the group and a place in the Walker Cup competition.

Camperdown finished third in the group with 15 points.

Gibbons scored his goals in the 67th and 81st minutes. Rohan Daley (28th) and André McFarlane (69th) were the other goalscorers for the Portmore-based Waterford.

Coke said despite the win, he was displeased with his team's performance.

"I think that we played in patches because I don't think we were motivated enough to play this match against Cumberland," said Coke.

"However, it is a win, we got three points from it and I am happy for that.

"Our immediate plans is to get all three points against JC and that is our objective right now and we know how we are going to get these points because we've already sized up that JC team," he said.

Top the zone

Coke continued: "It is very important for us to top the zone because the school has never topped their group for many years and we would like to do it this year."

Waterford dominated the early proceedings and were rewarded when Daley blasted home a powerful right-footed shot past goalkeeper André Edwards.

McFarlane went close to doubling Waterford's lead on the stroke of half-time, but his long-range effort crashed onto the crossbar.

The Portmore school started the second half, much more aggressively, which resulted in Gibbons doubling their lead when he fired past Edwards, who was well beaten at his near post.

McFarlane scored two minutes later with a rasping 25-yard shot, which went like a rocket past Edwards.

Gibbons netted his team's fourth goal at the 81st minute when he scored from close range.

Wayne Fraser, the coach of Cumberland, said: "This is a very young team and so I think that it is about them getting the experience from the competition.

"However, I'm a bit disappointed with the result, because I thought we could have played a bit better today," he added.

Yesterday's Results

Group A: Waterford 4 Cumberland 0

Group E: St George's College 4 St Jago 2, Wolmer's 1 Edith Dalton James 1, Spanish Town 8 Donald Quarrie 1