CATHERINE HALL, St James — St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) will be chasing school history today when they take on Garvey Maceo High in the final of the ISSA/LIME daCosta Cup schoolboy football competition at the Montego Bay Sports Complex, starting at 4:00 pm.

After winning their fourth straight Ben Francis Knockout title earlier in the season, STETHS, who have won the more prestigious daCosta Cup on three previous occasions, are going after a first-ever rural area double.

Garvey Maceo have already achieved that distinction in 2007 and are one of seven schools that have won the double since Cornwall College became the first school to cop both titles in one season in 1983.

A win for STETHS today would put them in line for a run at their first lien on the Olivier Shield, symbol of all-island schoolboy football supremacy. The daCosta Cup winners will take on Manning Cup supremos Jamaica College in the two-way play-offs set for next Wednesday and Saturday.

Yesterday, STETHS’ coach Omar Wedderburn, who led them to four finals in his two seasons including the daCosta Cup last year where they lost to Glenmuir in extra time, admitted that chasing the double was a goal they had set.

“Yes, getting the double is a factor for us, we are trying to make some history for the school,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

“The players are ready and up to the task and they want it too.”

Hainley Glashen, the coach of Garvey Maceo, was just as confident of his team’s chances to win their second title since 2007 and noted he did not mind coming into the game as the ‘dark horse’.

“We were not on the map at the start of the season as far as getting to the final… so we are still taking things a step at a time and our players are ready to go,” he noted.

The two schools have had differing paths to the final as STETHS were on practically every list to get at least to the semi-finals and have so far delivered. On the flip, Garvey Maceo have toiled under the radar, only coming to the fore in the Inter-Zone round then picked up momentum in the quarter-finals.

After finishing behind last year’s winners in Zone M, Garvey Maceo who last made it to the last four in 2009, then managed to win their Inter-Zone group before starting to stamp their class on their opponents.

Statistically, STETHS have the upper hand but would have played more games, even if their three wins in the Ben Francis KO are not factored in. STETHS played 10 first-round games to Garvey Maceo’s six and scored 49 goals.

That won’t matter to Wedderburn or his team today, however, as he said the focus will be on the opponents in front of them today. “We are not looking at the past, that would be like walking backwards,” the STETHS coach said.

Wedderburn said this year’s team is better than the one that lost in the daCosta Cup final last year. “Last year we had more skill at almost every position, but this year we have a better team.”

The team factor, he said, was one of the main reasons he was not worried that his top gun, Khesanio Hall, had not scored in three games after getting at least one in the first 17 games to be on 34, including both daCosta Cup and Ben Francis KO competitions.

If anything, the confident Wedderburn said Hall’s failure to score has made the team better. “The others realise they have to step up for us to win… Hall still plays his part as he makes assists and impacts the game,” the confident coach said.

Jovan James, who came over from Rusea’s High, has taken up the scoring mantle with three in their last four games.

There are very little secrets to the Garvey Maceo team as they will go as far as the pair of Ishmael Currie and Ryan Scott will take them.

The duo have been described as “power forwards” by the Garvey Maceo coaching staff and showed their worth against a tough defensive Frome team in the semi-finals with a goal each.

Dervial Huntley could be the ace in the hole for the Clarendon school if STETHS opt to focus on Currie and Scott.

As impressive as their midfield has been, STETHS’ defence has been almost impenetrable, allowing just one goal in their last seven games and zero over the last six.

The confident Romario Thompson, who was on the bench when they won in 2009, lead the defence that will seek to keep out the best offence since the start of the quarter-finals.

Garvey Maceo have scored six goals in their last four games, compared to STETHS’ four and will have momentum on their side.

Throughout the season, STETHS coach Wedderburn has reminded the media that sports fans had a laugh at his expense after he broke down in a live television broadcast after his team’s loss and said it was his time to make amends.