Gutsy St Elizabeth Tech deny St James High

Adrian Frater, News Editor

Western Bureau: In a gutsy display which spoke volumes for their character and determination, champions St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) yesterday rallied back from two goals down to earned a well-deserved 2-2 draw against St James High in their Group-One 2010 ISSA/Pepsi/ Digicel daCosta Cup quarter-final match in Santa Cruz.

In the other Group-One game, Glenmuir had to battle hard to come away with a 2-2 draw against Marcus Garvey Technical in the first game of a double-header at Jamalco. That result means that all four teams in Group One will go into Wednesday's second-round games with a point each.

In Group Two, the much-anticipated clash between the unbeaten Rusea's and the high-riding Lennon High at Brook's Park, in Mandeville, produced a lot of excitement but no goals. That 0-0 draw means both teams are still unbeaten in the daCosta Cup.

1-0 win

In the other Group-Two game, Garvey Maceo did what all the other team failed to do, scoring a hard-fought 1-0 win against Old Harbour in the second game of the Jamalco double-header. Lorenzo Addison was the hero for the Jeffrey Hewitt-coached Garvey Maceo outfit, getting the lone goal of the game.

In Santa Cruz, St James High created an early scare for the champions rushing into a 2-0 half-time lead behind François Clarke and Ricardo Morris. However, like they did in the Ben Francis KO semi-final when they also trailed St James 0-2, STETHS roared back to end the game level with goals from Romero Thompson and Kevon Farquharson.

"I thought we played brilliantly today because even when we were two goals down, we never lost our composure," said STETHS coach Andrew Edwards.

For St James High, which started the second half showboating and showing very little inclination to attack, it was a most disappointing result for their coach, Pastor Hugh Solomon.

"We played a beautiful first half and found ourselves with a two-goal cushion, which was good," said Pastor Solomon. "However, we played a terrible second half and that was just unacceptable."

strong second half

In their game against Marcus Garvey, Glenmuir played a strong first half and looked like winning the game after striking through Paul Wilson (penalty) and Clovel Dinnal. However, Marcus Garvey had a strong second half and scored twice to grab a share of the points.

"We should have won the game from the first half as we got quite a few chances," said Glenmuir's coach Patrick 'Jackie' Walters. "They (Marcus Garvey) played a very strong second half and they are perhaps deserving of a share of the points."

In their game against Old Harbour, Garvey Maceo were made to fight all the way as their opponents threw everything at them. In the end, Addison found the all-important goal for his team, giving them the Group-Two lead going into Wednesday's second round of games.

"Tactically, we played a very good game but Old Harbour made life difficult for us with their determination," said a victorious coach Hewitt.

Yesterday's results

Glenmuir 2 Marcus Garvey Tech 2

Garvey Maceo 1 Old Harbour High 0

STETHS 2. St James High 2

Lennon High 0. Rusea's High 0.