LACOVIA, St Elizabeth — Some say Munro College just weren’t good enough this season and will be back to their competitive best next year.

Others say that statement is disrespectful to the work done by their lesser known opponents to narrow the gap in Zone E. But, at the moment, Lacovia High School don’t mind. They’re too busy taking advantage of Munro’s failure to make it past the first round of the daCosta Cup.

Given a jump start following their surprised 3-2 win at Munro in their second game of the season, Lacovia didn’t look back. They just kept on going, losing only twice to the defending champions STETHS.

Many expected their “luck” run out in the Inter-zone, especially after drawing with Christiana High in their opening fixture. But the 1-0 win that followed, against Mile Gully High, made the 1-1 stalemate looked like a good result when Christiana suffered a 4-0 defeat to Clarendon College in their second game.

In the final second-round game against CC, all Lacovia needed to advance was another stalemate. In fact, so good was their standing in the group, they could have even afforded a loss to CC and still secure their place in the quarter-finals. But earning that 0-0 draw earned them some admirers.

“For a young team, I think we have been doing pretty well,” said coach Errol White. “Most of the players are nine graders, but the core of the team has been together a few years — Under-14, Under-16 coming — so they know each other.

“I think that chemistry has helped us this season.”

Today, they’ll make their quarter-final debut as the underdogs; the only team in their group — containing D’Cup’s most successful team Cornwall College (11 titles), three-time winners Glenmuir High and former Ben Francis Knockout champions Old Harbour High — who are yet to win a major schoolboy title. But even that doesn’t scare Lacovia.

“I have not seen any of them play this season, so we will focus on the mental side of our game,” White told the Jamaica Observer. “We have been doing well so far, so we just need to continue doing what we have been doing and improve where it is necessary.”

He added: “The players are very optimistic; they are ready to go out there and play, because reaching this far is something that most people never expected from us.”

And who knows what a good result against Old Harbour in their opening game, at the Jamalco Sports Club in Clarendon, could do to their confidence?