It’s final! Fatima and QRC escape drop while S/Juan North and East Mucurapo demoted

Almost seven months after the final ball was kicked in the 2016 Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) Premier Division, the SSFL executive finally gave public confirmation of the most tumultuous end to the local schoolboy season in this millennium.

And it meant good news for Queen’s Royal College (QRC) and Fatima College but heartbreak for San Juan Secondary and East Mucurapo Secondary, who thought they had escaped the drop only to be relegated after a late recalibration of the standings due to rule violations by Mucurapo and Presentation College (San Fernando).

Photo: QRC midfielder Kalev Keil (right) is tackled by a St Augustine player during SSFL Premier Division action at the QRC grounds on 8 September 2016. (Courtesy Chevaughn Christopher/Wired868)
Photo: QRC midfielder Kalev Keil (right) is tackled by a St Augustine player during SSFL Premier Division action at the QRC grounds on 8 September 2016.
(Courtesy Chevaughn Christopher/Wired868)

With the bottom three schools relegated to the Championship Division, Mucurapo, San Juan, QRC and Fatima where in 10th, 12th, 13th and 15th place respectively at the end of the season.

However, the improper use of illegitimate players Kori Cupid (Presentation) and Abdus Ramcharan (Mucurapo) prompted a late adjustment of the standings. Ramcharan had three subjects in Lower Six, which made him ineligible to play, while Cupid was also ineligible since it was his ninth year in high school.


The infractions meant Fatima climbed four places to 11th and QRC moved from 13th to 10th while East Mucurapo plunged five spots to 15th and San Juan slipped one crucial spot from 12th to 13th.

Photo: San Juan North Secondary striker Renaldo Boyce (right) attempts a bicycle kick during the East Zone Intercol final against St Augustine Secondary at the Larry Gomes Stadium, Malabar on 21 November 2016. (Courtesy Annalicia Caruth/Wired868)
Photo: San Juan North Secondary striker Renaldo Boyce (right) attempts a bicycle kick during the East Zone Intercol final against St Augustine Secondary at the Larry Gomes Stadium, Malabar on 21 November 2016.
(Courtesy Annalicia Caruth/Wired868)
[At the end of the season]

Previous 2016 SSFL Premier Division standings 

(Tabulated as Played-Won-Drew-Lost-Goals For-Goals Against-Points)

Shiva Boys HC     14-12-1-1-35-12-37

Presentation SF   14-10-2-2-32-11-32

Naparima              14-10-2-2-27-12-32

St Anthony’s        14-9-1-4-38-21-28

Signal Hill            14-6-2-6-16-13-20


St Augustine        14-5-5-4-15-12-20

Fyzabad Sec         14-6-2-6-26-25-20

St Mary’s              14-5-5-4-14-25-20

Trinity Moka       14-5-3-6-7-17-18

East Mucurapo   14-4-3-7-13-19-15

St Benedict’s       14-3-3-8-7-21-12

San Juan North  14-3-2-9-21-24-11

QRC                          14-2-4-8-8-20-10

Pleasantville        14-2-4-8-12-26-10

Fatima College    14-2-3-9-15-27-9

Photo: East Mucurapo Secondary attacker Zion McLeod goes airborne to control the ball during SSFL Premier Division action against St Benedict's College at Mucurapo Road on 6 October 2016. (Courtesy Nicholas Bhajan/Wired868)
Photo: East Mucurapo Secondary attacker Zion McLeod goes airborne to control the ball during SSFL Premier Division action against St Benedict’s College at Mucurapo Road on 6 October 2016.
(Courtesy Nicholas Bhajan/Wired868)
[After Disciplinary Committee rulings]

Final 2016 SSFL Premier Division standings 

(Tabulated as Played-Won-Drew-Lost-Goals For-Goals Against-Points)

Shiva Boys HC     14-12-1-1-35-12-37

Naparima              14-10-2-2-28-12-32

St Anthony’s         14-9-1-4-38-21-28

Presentation SF  14-7-2-5-27-20-23

Fyzabad Sec         14-7-2-5-28-23-23

Signal Hill            14-6-2-6-16-13-20

St Augustine        14-5-5-4-15-12-20

Trinity Moka       14-6-2-6-10-17-20

St Mary’s               14-5-5-4-14-25-20

QRC                         14-4-3-7-14-19-15

Fatima College   14-4-3-7-18-25-15

St Benedict’s       14-4-3-7-9-18-15

San Juan North 14-3-2-9-21-24-11

Pleasantville       14-2-4-8-12-26-10

East Mucurapo  14-2-1-11-10-26-7

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About Lasana Liburd

Lasana Liburd is the managing director and chief editor at Wired868.com and a journalist with over 20 years experience at several Trinidad and Tobago and international publications including Play the Game, World Soccer, UK Guardian and the Trinidad Express.

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76 comments

  1. I hope it is a mistake but how can a student spend 9 years in high school?

  2. And the SSFL still get the final table wrong they only gave Fatima 3 goals instead of 6 for the two games so that would mean they finish 10th QRC 11th better goal difference….they still cant get things right….

  3. Just like thema schools should sue when the league doesn’t do its work properly

  4. The system works for who they want it to work for imagine one of the sides who at fault stayed up and the side who fight whole season to stay up went down now tell me how could that be fear bull shit

  5. Good news my brother! Joel Julien

  6. San Juan and East Mucurapo should take this to the court. This is a an easy case to Win.

  7. Presentation should be demoted for breaking the rules ….but as they say in this country it’s all about who you know….I am sure if San Juan was a prestigious school like Presentation they would have never gotten demoted…San Juan needs to take this to court.

  8. Dawgg… this one was a sceneeeee

  9. Ut is interesting how we look at things. When i played college league if you played 1 illigitimate player you were disqualified totally. I remember Holy Cross College losing under 14 championship because 1 boy was over the age and he played 5 min in 1 game. In later years that was changed and it was decided that once this happened the team loses the matches in which the player played. That rule is so for everyone. While that would result in people gaining or losing points that id the rule

  10. LOLL Father and dem wasn’t taking da championship!! smh …once there is a will there is a way too Cj O’Brien

  11. ,2 teams broke d rules one stays up while d other demoted! Still scratching my head! This cannot be right! Hmm!

  12. How many teams in the league Lasana Liburd I forget

  13. It have players who have more titles than passes and in form 6

  14. Dion Sosa I know a player in my time played for 3 of these prestige schools in 1 season

  15. Call them nah man so that Mr Live Wire can further investigate and write his stories. Them really good yes

  16. I can call 4 schools running real racket right now

  17. Dion Sosa and they do the same thing with players but it gets overlooked sad

  18. Hahahaha take no prisoners eh. Them really good yes

  19. That’s why when I faced them it was extra blade pelting

  20. They always protect and pamper the prestige schools

  21. Administrators at schools who allowed this to happen should be fired. But this is sweet T&T. You wonder why there are problems at schools? And administrators cannot deal with the indiscipline?
    Simple answer, DEVIL CANNOT CORRECT SIN. AMEN.

  22. This has bing going on for yrs and it’s a double standard when it come to these colleges but we will be back up soon ….. Come on Mucurapo

  23. Fatima and QRC need to be playing n the Savannah.

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