‘We are ready to play’

WITH A tropical storm warning forcing organisers of the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) to postpone both Manning and daCosta Cup quarter-final openers, coaches have had mixed feelings about what the delays mean.

Cleighton Stephens, coach of Frome, said the postponement gives the team more time to recover.

“I am just grateful for the postponement. We had planned for today, but the postponement gives us more time to prepare and to recover. It is not affecting our team at all, especially after a tough round of 16. The guys need a break and, see, we are getting an extra day, so we cannot complain,” Stephens told The Gleaner.

The quarter-final round of both competitions were set to begin today with two matches in Group A of the rural daCosta Cup – St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) versus McGrath High at STETHS, and Glenmuir hosting Frome. These matches will now be pushed back to Wednesday, with Munro College up against Ocho Rios at home and Central High vs Garvey Maceo at the Wembley Community Centre.

Like Stephens, Omar ‘Rambo’ Wedderburn, coach of STETHS, said the team will make adjustments for the postponement of their game.

“Anything that is happening naturally, we cannot do anything about it. We have a way to flick our mindset right there and then. We are just waiting until the weather gives us the go-ahead and get this ball running. It won’t negatively impact us, to be honest. We, like everyone else, are just waiting and preparing,” Wedderburn said.

The weather system moving towards Jamaica strengthened to a tropical depression on Monday and tropical storm conditions are expected to affect the island today.

The Met Service says a turn to the northwest is expected to continue in this direction over the next few days. While the depression is in the vicinity of Jamaica, it is expected to produce heavy rainfall and strong gusts, primarily over eastern and southern parishes today.

Landslides should also be anticipated in vulnerable sections of the island.

The possibility exists that when the games return, wet outfields could impact players.

“It’s not like we are not used to the wet surface, because most of our first-round games were on wet surfaces. Most of our training sessions were on a wet field because Frome is where rain was born. It is always raining down there in Westmoreland. It might not be 100 per cent, but we make the necessary adjustments for preparations. We are accustomed to it,” Stephens explained.

Wedderburn believes his charges, while not faced with the same conditions that exist at Frome, are adaptable.

“Honestly, we have some boys who are willing to play in any condition. It could be on fire and out in the sea, we are ready to play. We just need the go-ahead right now. The wet field won’t impact us,” Wedderburn said.