JC hope to control STATHS’ Laing in crucial clash

TO CONTAIN St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS) midfielder Omar Laing, Jamaica College (JC) head coach, Davion Ferguson, hopes to limit passing lanes to the in-form attacker in their much-anticipated ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup quarter-final Group One football clash today at Stadium East at 1 p.m.

The fixture renews a budding rivalry between the two schools, having met in two of the last three Manning Cup finals, as well as twice in 2019, which ultimately decided that year's competition.

The JC team will enter the contest having not conceded in their last five games, while STATHS managed to score 12 goals in their last three games.

It is Laing who has been the most dangerous for STATHS, having scored nine goals so far in this campaign, including a hat-trick in their 4-1 rout of St Catherine High last Friday.

That is the danger which Ferguson says they will have to limit to give themselves a chance at victory

"He needs service and without service he is ineffective. So what we have to do is to defend as a unit, defend the situations that they try to play," Ferguson told STAR Sports. "They do a lot in the transition, they are very good in the counter-attack and these are situations that we have to lessen. We have to control them when we have the ball also more so when we don't have the ball because that is where they will hurt you the most."

STATHS head coach, Phillip Williams, mentions Laing as one of their x-factors this year, pleased with how he has progressed so far given the number of games he has played so far.

"We have many other (x-factors) in the team in each game but he has lived up to that billing. We are hopeful that he can put together some more games (like the one against St Catherine) for us in the near future," Williams said.

It will be the first time that JC and STATHS will meet since the 2019 final where JC prevailed on penalties. While the COVID-19 pandemic and the year-long absence of schoolboy football has changed personnel, Ferguson said that he expects the same intensity that has become the trademark of this fixture.

"No matter the competition, no matter the state of either team it is always going to be a competitive game. The motivation is a place in the semi-finals and that will push each team to give a little bit more than they would normally give," Ferguson said. "I expect it to be the same humdinger of a battle."