Cagey Dinthill-Clarendon affair expected
THE ISSA/FLOW daCosta Cup semi-finals will see a rematch of this season’s Ben Francis Knockout Cup final as winners Clarendon College (CC) and runners-up Dinthill Technical will be the first of a double-header at the Montego Bay Sports Complex, kicking off at 4 p.m.
The second match will be between FLOW Super Cup finalist St Elizabeth Technical High School and 10-time champions Rusea’s High at 6 p.m.
In their last meeting on November 8, Clarendon won 4-1 in extra-time. However, Dinthill head coach Curtis Hamilton told The Gleaner that his side has learnt a lot from their last encounter and will be going into a match he expects to be a very tactical one with positive intentions.
“I expect a hard-fought, tactical game with two different styles of play. We know their key player and their style of play, so we can’t allow them to play freely,” said Hamilton.
Hamilton said that over the years, Dinthill has only been close, but winning championships defines great teams, and they want to be considered as such. He believes that this year, with the group of players available, the team is as good as any and is focused on getting over the Clarendon College hurdle.
“It’s been a while since we have won the daCosta Cup, but it’s still in our blood and we’re champions. For the past couple of years, we found ourselves at this stage a few times. However, we are positive going into this game. I think this is the year, based on the fact that we have a lot of senior players,” said Hamilton.
100 PER CENT WIN RECORD
The 2014 champions Clarendon, despite their hiccups in the ISSAFLOW Super Cup quarter-finals against Calabar two Fridays ago, still hold a 100 per cent win record in the daCosta Cup. Coach Byjeon Thomas said the players’ state of mind is in the right place, as they have put what he described as a bad day behind them, and is hoping it was their first and last.
“We are expecting a very difficult game. However, we are prepared mentally to go about things differently because we have been conceding early, and we are seeking to correct that. We are not going out there planning to score early, but rather to keep a clean sheet and try to get on the scoresheet,” said Thomas.