Manning Cup quarter-finals: KC dominate Tivoli; Mona and JC draw

Defending champions Mona High and Jamaica College (JC) played to a 1-1 draw on the opening day of quarter-final action in the ISSA/Digicel Manning Cup competition on Friday.

Mona took the lead in the 35th minute at Stadium East through Sean Leighton, who scored his fifth goal of the season with a powerful strike from just outside the 18-yard box, beating JC goalkeeper Taywane Lynch. However, JC — the most successful team in the competition with 31 titles — equalised in the 66th minute when captain Dyllan John converted a penalty, marking his eighth goal this season.

JC appeared to have taken the lead earlier, but Giovanni Taylor’s goal was ruled out. Moments later, Mona capitalized to score their opener.

In the second game, Kingston College (KC) returned to winning ways with a decisive 5-0 win over Tivoli Gardens High, also at Stadium East. Damaine Smith set the tone for KC with two early goals, scoring in the third and 19th minutes, helping the Vassell Reynolds-coached side rebound from its recent 1-0 loss to St Andrew Technical High School.

The victory positions KC, the third most successful team in Manning Cup history with 16 titles, at the top of Zone A with three points, placing them two points ahead of both JC and Mona.

In Zone B, St Catherine High defeated Campion College 2-0 at Prison Oval in Spanish Town, establishing an early lead in their group.

The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals.

Friday’s resultsMona High 1, JC 1St Catherine High 2, Campion College 0KC 5, Tivoli 0

Video courtesy of SportsMax TV.