Goalie stars for STATHS
St Andrew Technical High (STATHS) and their coach Phillip Williams are still celebrating a berth in this year’s semi-finals of the ISSA/FLOW Manning Cup competition following a dramatic penalty shootout win over St George’s College yesterday.
According to a delighted Williams, yesterday’s comefrom-behind victory puts them one step closer to winning the competition.
STATHS secured their spot in the last four with an exciting 43 penalty kicks victory after both teams played out a 1-1 draw at full time before going directly into the shoot-out.
“This year we had a committee and they gave me the job to refocus the team and to give the team an identity and so we spent a lot of time in the summer doing that. I am happy that we are now in the semi-finals of the competition,” said Williams.
BIG OCCASION
“I think it is a victory that is well deserved. We were coming off two losses, but we gained a lot of experience because my team learnt how to play on the big occasion and this game was one,” Williams added.
Meanwhile, St George’s coach Neville ‘Bertis’ Bell said his team tried their best.
“It was a game of two halves because I don’t think we played well in the first half. We did well in the second half, but we never got that second goal and they scored a pretty decent one,” said Bell.
“We put out our best and we played hard. I am not going to find any excuses because St Andrew Technical did what they had to do from the penalty spot to win the game,” Bell said.
Romario Harding gave St George’s the lead in the 45th minute, but substitute Nicholas Stewart netted the equaliser for STATHS five minutes from full time.
In the dreaded penalty shootout, goalkeeper Jeadine White kept his cool to save two penalties for STATHS before returning to score the winning kick.
White and Stewart, David Smith and Mark Chambers, were the scores for STATHS in the penalty shoot-out.
The 17-year-old White was overjoyed with the win.
“I am very happy,” said White. “My performance is all based on training because I made some wrong moves in the quarter finals of the FLOW Super Cup (against St Elizabeth Technical). Before the penalties I told my teammates that I owed them,” he said.
STATHS will face Kingston College in one semi-final, while Jamaica College will tackle Holy Trinity High in the other semifinal. Both matches are scheduled for next Tuesday.