Crunch time in Manning Cup

The remaining quarterfinalists for the 2026 ISSA Manning Cup will be confirmed today when the final round of matches in the Round of 16 gets under way across the Corporate Area.

Defending champions Excelsior High, Kingston College (KC), Calabar High, St Andrew Technical High (STATHS) and Eltham High have already booked their spots in the next round.

In Zone One action, Mona High and St Catherine High will go head-to-head at Spanish Town Prison Oval at 3 p.m. with a spot in the final eight on the line.

Mona sit second in the zone on three points, but will be wary of St Catherine who sit third on one.

For Mona to advance, they will need to avoid the defeat to ensure they advance while St Catherine will need a win if they are to sneak into the second automatic qualifying spot.

St George’s College (STGC), fourth in the zone on one point, also mathematically have a chance to advance but will need to defeat Excelsior by six clear goals to advance.

STGC will play hosts to Excelsior at Winchester Park, with kick-off set for 3 p.m.

ZONE TWO

KC and Calabar have already booked their spots in Zone Two as they sit first and second, both on six points, with Vauxhall High and Camperdown High eliminated from contention.

Calabar will welcome KC to the Waterhouse Mini Stadium at 5 p.m as the two battle for group honours.

At Stadium East, Camperdown will host Vauxhall in a game of academic interest to determine the final group placements.

ZONE THREE

In Zone Three, Wolmer’s Boys will look to confirm their spot in the final eight when they take on Hillel Academy at the Waterhouse Mini Stadium at 3 p.m.

Wolmer’s sit second in the group on three points, with Hillel fourth on one point.

Wolmer’s will enter the contest as heavy favourites and have already scored a major win over Hillel this season, completing a comfortable 4-1 win when the two teams met in the Walker Cup KO competition.

Zone leaders STATHs will look to complete a perfect run when they take on St Jago High at Stadium East at 3 p.m.

St Jago still have a chance to advance but will need an unlikely win over the high-flying STATHS unit.

ZONE FOUR

The race for the quarterfinals in Zone Four could prove to be an exciting finish as Eltham, who lead the zone with a perfect record, will take on Jamaica College (JC) in their final group game at home with kick-off set for 3 p.m.

Eltham are fresh off a 9-0 win over Tivoli and will look to pick up a major win when they face JC who suffered a shock 2-2 draw against Tivoli in their opening game of the round.

For JC, they will be confident they can advance as win or a draw would put them out of reach of third-place Tivoli.

gregory.bryce@gleanerjm.com

Today’s games

St Catherine vs Mona at Prison Oval (3 p.m.)

STGC vs Excelsior at Winchester Park (3 p.m.)

Wolmer’s vs Hillel at Waterhouse Mini Stadium (3 p.m.)

Calabar vs KC at Waterhouse Mini Stadium (5 p.m.)

STATHS vs St Jago at Stadium East (3 p.m.)

Camperdown vs Vauxhall at Stadium East (5 p.m.)

Eltham vs JC at Eltham (3 p.m.)

Norman Manley vs Tivoli at Ashenheim Stadium (3 p.m.)