Comfortable winners at zonal level, Scarborough Secondary of the Tobago Zone and Presentation College Chaguanas of the Central Zone will kick off the Big Five phase of the BG T&T Secondary Schools Football League this afternoon at Shaw Park from 4 p.m. A place in the semi-finals awaits the winners.
For the first time in three years, there will be new national League champions.
This is because back-to-back champs St Anthony's College of the North Zone, lost their zonal crown and thus their Big Five ticket to Mucurapo Senior Comprehensive. "Compre" are returning to this competition for the first time since 1998 when they lost the final to Signal Hill Senior Comprehensive.
However, Signal Hill too will be missing this year, having trailed Scarborough by seven points in the League.
The Scarborough lads earned their place in the final five on the back of seven wins and a draw in Tobago. Presentation won nine out of ten, their sole defeat coming in their very last game against chief rivals Carapichaima Senior Comprehensive on Thursday, with the League title already retained and today's fixture already set.
The Central side will be hoping that loss was not a pointer to the future. Pres Chaguanas have habitually stumbled at this quarter-final hurdle. They don't travel well.
Last season they went down 2-0 at Guaracara Park to South champs Naparima College. And in 2002, on their last Big Five visit to the sister isle, they were on the wrong end of a 7-0 hiding.
But the Pres class of 2004 may be a better balanced sharper version of those sides.
Marvin Manswell, Anthony Ogarro and Dion Lewis have done efficient work in attack and contributed significantly to their school's 66-goal tally in just 10 games.
Kevon Lalloo, a veteran on this team, is not quite the one-man show he once had to be and now anchors things in more of a defensive midfield position.
The problem for Pres though is that their zonal challengers have not traditionally provided the kind of stern competition to ideally prepare them for these intra-zonal contests.
The same holds true, to a lesser degree in Tobago.
Youthful Scarborough have already played above pre season expectations in so easily overcoming the Signal Hill challenge.
"They gelled quicker than expected," Scarborough assistant manager Darren Joseph said yesterday.
A balanced team also seemed to be the key to their success, with midfielder Valton Brathwaite and the strike pair of Keno Kerr (19 goals) and Trevaughn James (nine) being the more notable contributors.
But like Pres, Scarborough have found things far too easy in a zone that contained the hapless Elizabeth's College who failed to score a single goal while conceding 104.
Today's quarter-final will therefore be a further, stronger test of their credentials.
But Scarborough, as they have all season, are trying to keep their eyes on the immediate task.
"Our expectations are to take every game a step at a time," Joseph said.
"We know that the Central champions are going to come here with their tails up. We are hoping to give a creditable performance and a good win."
In addition to the Big Five game, there are a number of outstanding zonal matches that will be played this afternoon.
In the North, Morvant/Laventille need to beat Queen's Royal College to have any chance of remaining in the Championship Division. Victory would draw them level with seventh placed Tranquillity Secondary. But with a superior goal difference already, the win will be sufficient to push them out of the automatic relegation spot. However the seveth team still face a possible playoff with the Senior Division winners. St Anthony's also play Mucurapo at Westmoorings this afternoon.
In the South, Pleasantville Senior Comprehensive will have to beat visiting Vessigny Secondary by seven clear goals to avoid the automatic drop; in the East, Barataria Senior Comprehensive host new champs St Augustine Senior Secondary; in Central, Chaguanas Senior Comprehensive host Carapichaima in Chaguanas and in Tobago, Bishop's High School play Elizabeth's in a 10am game at Shaw Park.
All other matches begin at 3.45 p.m.