Battle on for spots in Walker Cup last four

Wolmer’s Boys head coach Haron Martin said his players will not shy away from facing reigning Manning Cup champions Excelsior High when they square off in the ISSA Walker Cup quarterfinals today at Stadium East.

Wolmer’s oppose Excelsior in the feature match of a double-header at 4:30 p.m., with Jamaica College (JC) taking on Eltham High in the opening game at 2 p.m.

Martin said it will be an important clash for the boys from Heroes Circle and a strong test of where they stand among the competition’s elite.

He explained that a fixture against the reigning Manning Cup champions is the type of pressure his players must handle if they want to lift the Walker Cup title.

“It’s a big game for us because we’re going up against, of course, the Manning Cup champions,” Martin said before the game.

“These are the games that we really look forward to. These are games, of course, you cannot shy away from. If you want to be champions, these are the type of games you have to play and the teams you have to play against.”

Martin said his players have already proven they can get past schoolboy football champions after eliminating the defending Walker Cup champions St Catherine High in the previous round.

Wolmer’s clipped St Catherine 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in regulation time.

Martin said he is also familiar with Excelsior’s squad having previous faced them in both the U14 and U16 competitions.

“Going up against Excelsior, we’re expecting a tough game,” he said. “We have had a few match-ups in the U14s and U16s before, so both teams are familiar with each other.”

Martin continued, “But we are confident, I mean, we have knocked out the Walker Cup champions. Of course, we’re now coming up against the Manning Cup champions and we’re looking to qualify for the semifinals.”

Wolmer’s will look to captain and national U17 representative Romie Henry to lead the team from midfield.

NOTHING TO PROVE

For Excelsior, they are led by head coach Keon Broderick who insisted his players have nothing to prove after their Manning Cup triumph last year.

Excelsior opened their Walker Cup campaign with a 7-0 drubbing of Kingston Technical but did not play in the second round as their opponents, Waterford High, conceded the match.

Broderick said Excelsior’s win over Kingston Tech was not a statement of intent, but rather their ambitions to execute well each game.

“We’re not here to send any statement to any team. We’re just here to play good football and we’re here to give of our best,” he said.

“Once our best is good enough, then we’ll do what we have to do.”

Excelsior’s ambitions for the semifinals will largely be helped by striker Habbie Mohamed, who bagged a hat trick in their opening win against Kingston Tech.

Also in action, Vauxhall High and Mona High will open a double-header at the Drewsland Mini Stadium in a battle of the Butlers, with kick off set for 2 p.m. Craig Butler is head coach of Mona while his son Kyle holds the reins at Vauxhall.

In the curtain closer, St Andrew Technical High will draw battle lines against Kingston College at 4:30 p.m. in what is expected to be an exciting affair.

gregory.bryce@gleanerjm.com

Today’s games

Vauxhall vs Mona at Drewsland Mini Stadium (2pm)

STATHS vs KC at Drewsland Mini Stadium (4:30pm)

JC vs Eltham at Stadium East (2pm)

Excelsior vs Wolmer’s at Stadium East (4:30pm)