Cornwall makes plans for deeper daCosta Cup run

FAILING TO advance to the quarterfinals in last season’s ISSA daCosta Cup season, Cornwall College team’s ambition for the upcoming season is to surpass that achievement and potentially compete for the championship.

Cornwall’s coach, Hector Wright, told The Gleaner that the team is focused on steadily taking it step by step.

“We are hoping we can take it a step further. Once we do that, we can always think about winning the championship. I just want to ensure that we go further than we did last year,” said Wright, a former national midfielder, who made his debut in 1988 against Canada and earned 110 caps.

Last season, Cornwall advanced as winners of their zone, finished second in the second round before finishing third in the round-of-16 zone, winning only one game against a winless Clarendon College.

They advanced to the quarterfinals of the Ben Francis Knockout Cup after they squeezed out a 5-4 penalty shoot-out victory over Happy Grove High School. However, they lost to the Ben Francis champions, St Elizabeth Technical High School, in the quarterfinals in a 9-8 penalty shoot-out.

According to Wright, preparations for the season have been good, especially with the preseason tournament added.

“We went to Kingston last weekend, and our physical trainers were saying we are not too far in terms of peaking. What we started to do for the rest of the season is back off a little to prevent overfatigue,” said Wright.

Cornwall were crowned the first champions of the Montego Bay United FC inaugural Invitational High School Football Competition when they clipped Frome Technical High 2-1 in the finals.

“Competitions like these are really good, especially preseason, so we can prepare or have it be a part of our preparation going into the season.

“In terms of physical work, we try to at least tone the boys down. So far, it has been good, and we just hope we can make it better,” he added.

It has been nine years since Cornwall won a daCosta Cup title.

Having retained the majority of the players from last season, Wright says he is confident due to the team’s growing experience.

“We lost four players that played for two or three seasons. Most of the players we have now are from the under-14 and under-16 programme. Some of them, it is their second year in the daCosta Cup, so a little experience is there. I just hope they can build on that.”

The 129-year-old Cornwall College have won 31 titles in schoolboy football. These include 12 daCosta Cup, seven Ben Francis KO, and 12 Olivier Shield titles.

Cornwall will be campaigning in Zone A of the first round with Herbert Morrison Technical High, Green Pond High, Irwin High, Maldon High, and St James High.

The ISSA schoolboy football season will officially begin on Saturday, September 6.