Clarendon College is the ISSA SBF Oliver Shield Champion 2019
Saturday, Dec. 7th started much like any other day. One could not have foreseen how the events of the day would unfold. There was some rain in Kingston earlier that day, but it was at 5pm that the stars came out for the Olivier Shield showdown between defending champions Clarendon College and Manning Cup heavyweights Jamaica College.
The route to the final was quite different: CC’s only blemish in traditional football was a stalemate with Lennon High on the opening day of the season; every other opponent including D’Cup final opponents and regular beating stick Dinthill, got roughed up. JC on the other hand, qualified for the semi-final without a victory, and by virtue of not being beaten as badly by STATHS as the other teams in the group were. Two consecutive penalty wins saw them lift the Manning Cup and earn the right to face CC.
The teams took to the pitch in front of a capacity crowd – remarkably featuring more #CCNation than fervent Fervet fans. They seemed to know they would have been outnumbered, so they brought drums to drum up some enthusiasm. CC were in an all gold strip while JC wore white shirts and navy shorts.
The whistle sounded and CC went straight for the jugular with slick passing and dribbling, keeping JC firmly on the back foot. JC did well to absorb the tremendous pressure of the opening stanza but the difference in quality was quite glaring. A power outage stopped play for quite some time and disrupted CC’s momentum, and when the game resumed, the balance of play was relatively even.
The 2nd half saw JC being very defensive and keeping 10 players behind the ball while trying to counter, but midway the half they made a change and brought on an attacker who sparked their team and fans into life. This coincided with uncharacteristic errors in defense and suddenly JC were ahead in the 88th minute, via an ugly, clumsy goal with more than a hint of offside to it.
Cometh the hour, cometh the man – in the person of goalkeeper Prince-Daniel Smith. He took the ball to the centre spot for kickoff but decided to end the game as our 4th attacker. The second half began amidst tumltuous celebrations by JC fans, but CC instantly earned a corner; as the ball came over, two goalkeepers went up for it. Smith got his head to it and the JC goalkeeper blocked it – only to watch in dismay as Smith followed up to score the equalizer. The game ended shortly afterwards, but JC were already a beaten bunch.
Penalty kicks followed, and four immaculate kicks for CC against one successful effort for JC meant that the prestigious symbol of high school supremacy would return to the cool hills of Chapelton, where it could be argued it rightfully belongs.