Ari will be back for Champs – Myrie
In a season when they ended their 32 years wait to lift the Manning Cup, one of the biggest disappointments of Kingston College’s 2018 schoolboy football season came when Aryamanya Rodgers dislocated his ankle in the second half of the ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup final.
Rodgers, who is one of KC’s standout track athletes, was given permission to join the Manning Cup team by principal Dave Myrie after impressing coach Ludlow Bernard with his skills over the summer.
Myrie was reluctant to allow Rodgers to play football as he is regarded as a prize asset for KC’s athletics team, which is trying to ensure that a decade doesn’t pass without the Purples holding the Mortimer Geddes trophy.
VERY CRITICAL
“The people with the power figure that quite a lot has been invested in him, and for that reason they would want to protect their investment. They believe he is very critical to the athletics team. But he is very serious about playing (Manning Cup), and he keeps telling me: ‘Coach, I want to play, talk to so and so.’” Bernard told STAR Sports in the summer.
Myrie gave permission for Rodgers to play. And, despite the fact the 17-year-old picked up an injury that could cause him to be sidelined for months, Myrie does not regret his decision.
“I have no regrets. He wanted to play. If you listen to Ari’s interview, he said that football is his first love. He wanted to play football, his uncle was okay with it and he wanted to play. It is unfortunate that he picked up an injury in the last match of the season but we have no regrets,” he said.
Bernard said that Rodgers should be able to get rid of the cast on his legs in six weeks. And though his preparation for the 2019 athletics season is already derailed, Myrie believes that the diminutive athlete should be back for the ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships.
“Ari will be back for the track and field season. The track season is a long enough season for him to be back ,” he said.
KC last won the Boys’ title in 2009.