Coach to make changes as St Catherine look to save season

Staring at quarter-final elimination, St Catherine High head coach Anthony Patrick says he will freshen the line-up to give his team a chance of continuing their ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup campaign when they face Mona High today at Stadium East at 3 p.m.

St Catherine were outdone by St Andrew Technical High School 4-1 in their opening game last Friday, a result he blamed on the bad starts that have continually plagued the team this season.

Against Mona High in a must-win game, Patrick says that he intends to give his younger players a chance to prove themselves not only for today, but for their long-term futures.

"We are going to make some changes in personnel. We have some players that will be 18 this year that can't play next year. So definitely, we are going to pull them and give the 14-, 15-, and 16 year-olds some opportunity to play and prepare them for next season," Patrick told STAR Sports.

For Patrick, he still believes in his chances of a semi-final spot despite the rough start, and he is banking on the young players to take charge of the opportunity given to them.

"Hopefully, they can raise their hands and come up trumps when they get the opportunity to play," Patrick said.

Meanwhile, Mona High are also looking to respond after losing 2-0 to Jamaica College (JC) last Friday in their opener in a game that head coach Craig Butler attributed the defeat to a lack of composure in the second half. But after the game, he was confident in his team's ability to respond and to face the reigning champions again in the latter rounds.

"Congrats to JC. Good job in the win. We will win our next two games, and we will meet you in the semi-finals or in the final," Butler said. "It's how the ball is played. This is how it is, and I am glad that we have that competitive nature."