Malick, St Benedict’s in SSFL top five clash
“That loss to Trinity College East woke us up.”
These were the words of Malick Secondary coach Anthony Bartholomew, as he sent a stern warning to his opponent St Benedict’s College ahead of Saturday’s (September 27) crucial clash between second and fifth on the standings in the Premier Division of the Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) at St Mary’s College Ground in Port-of-Spain.Malick entered that match in the third position, seemingly overconfident and unaware of the challenges before them. However, Bartholomew, though disappointed by the 3-2 loss at the Arima Velodrome on Wednesday, said: “It made us know where we are.”The school, dominant in the North Zone in the 1990s, appears to have returned to the Malick of old with a team considered strong in all departments of the game, both Bartholomew and St Benedict’s coach Randolph Boyce said yesterday.“The players were overconfident, but tomorrow (today) we will be ready and confident against St Benedict’s. I think player-for-player we have more energy, more skill and will be able to outdo our opponents tomorrow (today), but then again, the game is played on the day,” Bartholomew explained.
St Benedict’s, like most of the other teams had to undergo a transition period by which they were not severely hard-hit by, due to an ongoing development programme.“St Benedict’s strength has always been discipline, teamwork, and the desire by each player to work for each other. This is what we are going to head into tomorrow’s (today’s) match with and hopefully, it would bring us the right result,” Boyce said.
SATURDAY’S MATCHES
Arima North vs QRC, Arima Velodrome, 4 pm
East Mucurapo vs Presentation, QRC Grd, 4 pm
Fatima College vs CIC, Fatima Grd, 4 pm
San Juan North vs Miracle Ministries, San Juan, 3.30 pm
Speyside vs Trinity College East, Speyside, 4 pm
St Augustine vs Signal Hill, St Augustine, 4 pm