IS JC ON THE VERGE OF IMMORTALITY

Jamaica College is two or three games away from completing the 2014 schoolboy football season unbeaten. With the inaugural LIME Super Cup and the Manning Cup already in the bag, JC have only to defeat St. Georges College in the Walker Cup title and to play the winner of the daCosta Cup – either Clarendon College or STETHS – for the Olivier Shield.

Success in those remaining games – in hindsight, it could be two games since I believe the Olivier Shield has now been reduced to a one-off, winner-take-all match – would see JC not only ending the season undefeated, it would also see them winning four schoolboy titles in one season, a pretty impressive achievement.

It wont be even necessary to start comparing this team with other great schoolboy teams because this JC team is not even in the conversation. This team is nowhere as good as the 1977 all-conquering Clarendon College team coached by Winston Chung Fah, and even though I never saw those teams, I suspect that they were not nearly as good as Wolmer’s 1971 Manning Cup teams nor the 1964 Kingston College team that many people say is arguably the best schoolboy football team in Jamaica’s history. Heck, they might not even be the best team of this current era. St. Georges, I believe, holds that title. Having said that however, there is a lot to admire about this JC team.

Led by perhaps the best schoolboy footballer today, Junior Flemmings, JC has displayed a tenacity that has seen them survive scares from Cornwall College in the LIME Super Cup; Camperdown in the Manning Cup semi-final and a spirited Charlie Smith in last Saturday’s final. Flemmings has left an indelible mark on this team and schoolboy football that will make him a legend in this era.

Every time a team has pushed JC, Flemmings took over the game and ensured that his team would prevail. In the LIME Super Cup final, he had a hand in both JC goals as his team withstood the challenge of Holy Trinity. He was even more inspirational against a Camperdown team that could have and perhaps should have beaten JC in the Manning Cup semis, and of course, his opening goal led the way to the  successful defense of the Manning Cup title against a determined but profligate Charlie Smith High.

Anyone doubting Flemmings’ talent need only to note the interest expressed in him by Manchester City FC’s Academy and Toronto FC. The young man has talent and a maturity that belies his age and his leadership on and off the field has been a cornerstone to the legacy the team has constructed over the past half-a-decade.

The over-arching leadership has been equally as responsible for the school’s success. The support structure and the coaching staff around this team must be lauded. The most successful teams, schoolboy teams in Jamaica, are usually the ones that have the best supporting staff behind their on-field efforts and what is happening at Jamaica College is a clear indication of the kind of support behind the team. Ian Forbes ought to be praised for his efforts, as well as the coaching staff led by Miguel Coley, arguably the best schoolboy coach. All of these efforts have been marshaled by Prinicipal Ruel Reid.

There are those who will argue about JC’s recruiting campaign and certainly that has had some bearing on their success, but to be fair, other schools that have recruited have come nowhere close to JC’s success as they have proven that recruiting, as frowned upon as it has been, does not guarantee victory.

JC could be about to become immortal and there have been many behind what would be a history-making achievement.