Clarendon Elite competition gets going this month

After a successful staging last year, top schoolboy teams will get a chance to showcase their skills ahead of this year’s ISSA schoolboy football season when the second staging of the Clarendon Elite Football Competition takes place over three days, starting Friday at Glenmuir High School.

The competition will feature eight teams, including three newcomers from the Corporate Area – defending Manning Cup champions, Excelsior, Kingston College, and Mona High. They will be joined by rural teams Denbigh, Vere Technical, Manchester High, Munro College and defending champions Glenmuir, who defeated Vere Technical in last year’s final.

There will be cash incentives for the top teams, with the winners taking home $550,000, second place earning $250,000, and the third-place team receiving $100,000.

All eight teams will be in action on Friday’s opening day, with Vere Technical taking on Mona at 10 a.m. Denbigh will oppose Excelsior at noon, Kingston College will face Manchester High at 2 p.m., while Glenmuir will meet Munro in the final match of the day at 4 p.m.

The winners on the opening day will return on Saturday for the semi-finals, with the victorious teams advancing to Sunday’s final. The losing semi-finalists will contest the third-place playoff before the championship match.

The brainchild behind the competition, Anthony Baker, is looking forward to another successful staging.

“I am very pleased with the success of the first year of the competition and I am very confident that this year’s staging will be bigger and better. We see football as a vehicle for youth development, building character and giving back to the Clarendon community, fostering community pride and celebrating teamwork and integrity among young players,” said Baker, a former student of Denbigh and Glenmuir.

Sponsors for this year’s competition include Sim Lo2s, Rawlins Trucking Services LLC, 767 Girls Rock, AJR Sporting Goods, Rolling Acres Farm, and Sports With ABB.