Wired868 Wired868 for smart sport news and opinion
At the midway point of the 2024 Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) Premier Division season, there is already a clear frontrunner.
St Benedict’s College pulled six points clear of the pack today, with a 2-1 win away to St Anthony’s College at Westmoorings. And, crucially, the ‘La Romaine Lions’ have already faced all but one team in the top six of the league standings.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
Already, the title looks to be theirs to lose.
It was 1-1 at the interval today with strikes from Adam Pierre (St Benedict’s) and Mordecai Ford (St Anthony’s) cancelling each other out. But, as he did against Fatima College, flanker Derrel ‘Zoom Zoom’ Garcia conjured up a winner—as Benedict’s again found a way to settle a tight affair.
The ‘Westmoorings Tigers’ remain in sixth spot on the 16-team standings, although they have a game in hand away to seventh placed Naparima College. A win for either team could propel them to fourth place.
In today’s other rescheduled match, newly promoted East Zone team St Augustine Secondary pulled off a 2-1 win away to Speyside High—just 48 hours after they edged Trinity College East in Trincity.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
Flanker Elijah Baptiste got the game winner for the ‘Green Machine’, after midfielder Abraham Kirk’s opener was nullified in the second half by Speyside attacker Shyon George.
The triumph saw St Augustine soar a remarkable seven places in three days, as they climbed from inside the relegation zone to a far more comfortable eighth place.
For Speyside, who have made themselves at home in the SSFL top tier since 2019, they face a battle remain in the Premier Division now.
The ‘Country Boys’ have four points from six games along with an inferior goal differential to the four schools immediately above them: East Mucurapo Secondary (six points), Trinity College East (six points), Signal Hill Secondary (eight points), and Malick Secondary (eight points).
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
Speyside travel to Lewis Street in San Fernando on Wednesday to tackle Naparima while St Augustine have a chance to make it three games on the trot—and effectively seal their Premier Division place for 2025—when they host East Mucurapo Secondary.
St Benedict’s College are away to a resurgent Queen’s Royal College (fifth with 13 points) in midweek while defending champions Fatima College, who are coming off of successive defeats to St Anthony’s and St Benedict’s, will hope to restart their engines when they face Signal Hill in Tobago.
Rescheduled matches
(Mon 7 Oct)
St Anthony’s College 1 (Mordecai Ford), St Benedict’s College 2 (Adam Pierre, Derrel Garcia) at Westmoorings;
Speyside High 1 (Shylon George 61), St Augustine Secondary 2 (Abraham Kirk 11, Elijah Baptiste 77) at Speyside.
2024 SSFL Premier Division
| Pos | Club | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Fatima | 15 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 50 | 11 | 39 | 38 |
| 2 |  Presentation | 15 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 33 | 10 | 23 | 35 |
| 3 |  St Anthony's | 15 | 11 | 0 | 4 | 38 | 19 | 19 | 33 |
| 4 |  St Benedict's | 15 | 9 | 2 | 4 | 28 | 16 | 12 | 29 |
| 5 |  Arima North | 15 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 26 | 14 | 12 | 24 |
| 6 |  QRC | 15 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 24 | 19 | 5 | 24 |
| 7 |  Naparima | 15 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 26 | 19 | 7 | 22 |
| 8 |  San Juan | 15 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 28 | 27 | 1 | 22 |
| 9 |  Signal Hill | 15 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 26 | 28 | -2 | 21 |
| 10 |  Malick | 15 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 30 | 32 | -2 | 20 |
| 11 |  St Mary's | 15 | 5 | 1 | 9 | 17 | 29 | -12 | 16 |
| 12 |  St Augustine | 15 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 34 | -23 | 15 |
| 13 |  Trinity East | 15 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 20 | 30 | -10 | 13 |
| 14 |  Speyside | 15 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 21 | 34 | -13 | 12 |
| 15 |  Mucurapo | 15 | 4 | 0 | 11 | 14 | 27 | -13 | 12 |
| 16 |  Miracle Ministries | 15 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 8 | 51 | -43 | 7 |
Upcoming fixtures
(Wed 9 Oct)
Naparima College v Speyside High, 3.30pm, Lewis Street;
Signal Hill Secondary v Fatima College, 4pm, Signal Hill;
Malick Secondary v San Juan North, 4pm, Westmoorings;
Arima North Secondary v Miracle Ministries PHS, 4pm, Arima Velodrome;
Presentation (San F’do) v St Mary’s College, 4pm, Mannie Ramjohn Stadium;
Queen’s Royal College v St Benedict’s College, 4pm, QRC;
St Augustine Secondary v East Mucurapo Secondary, 4pm, Warren Street;
Trinity College East v St Anthony’s College, 4pm, Trincity.
The historical overview A Short History of Santa Rosa De Arima by Jean Patricia Elie states: “[...] Arima was effectively Read more
“[…] A few years later, the Washington Darts joined the NASL and I decided to visit Trinidad on a recruiting Read more
Seventeen-year-old St Benedict’s College student Derrel “Zoom Zoom” Garcia is set to make his national senior international debut away to Read more
“[…] Leroy De Leon was not only a footballer of extraordinary skill and vision but also an ambassador for the Read more
For the first time in the 10-year history of the Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) Premier Division, the champion school Read more
Scarborough Secondary are a Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) Premier Division team for the first time, as they were one Read more
