Lennon, Claude McKay in key clash

Adrian Frater, News Editor

WESTERN BUREAU:

With the 2011-12 ISSA/ Gatorade/Digicel daCosta Cup now on in earnest, fans in central Jamaica are poised for another afternoon of excitement when the competition continues today with three games each in zones H and I of the 77-team competition, which is divided into 12 zones.

While all the games are equally important since teams are still jockeying for positions, the Zone H game between last year's beaten finalists, Lennon High, who suffered a surprise 1-0 loss to Edwin Allen on Saturday; and the high-riding Claude McKay, could well be the match of the day.

Lennon, with six points accumulated from their two wins and one defeat, must consider it of critical importance to put the brakes on Claude McKay, who are off to a brilliant start with three wins and one defeat in their four outings. However, if their 2-1 win against Alston on Saturday is anything to go by, Claude McKay will be difficult to beat.

In another key game in the group, former champion Clarendon College, with two wins from two starts, will be aiming to take sole leadership of the group with a win against Alston. Based on the 3-0 and 8-0 wins against Claude McKay and Porus, respectively, the Clarendon College team should be bubbling with confidence.

Over in Zone I, former champion Glenmuir, with maximum nine points from three games after beating Denbigh 2-0, outscoring Bustamante High 4-1 and clipping Vere 2-1, should make it four straight at the expense of Central, which bounced back from three consecutive defeats to beat Bustamante 1-0 on Saturday.

The other two Zone I games could be keenly contested, as both Vere and Denbigh and the Garvey Maceo versus Kemps Hill matchups involve fairly competent teams. Denbigh, on a high from Saturday's 5-3 win against Garvey Maceo, should start favourites against the pointless Vere Technical, while Garvey Maceo should be anxious to rebound against a tough Kemps Hill.