Milo Schools U18 Football tournament 2023: Newcomers Patentia, Mackenzie High brimming with confidence

The Milo Schools’ Under-18 Football Tournament will head into the Round-of-16 this weekend with a number of fresh faces making it to the knockout stage.
Among those teams are newcomers to the competition Mackenzie High (MHS) and Patentia Secondary (PS). Both have qualified out of Group E, with Mackenzie High finishing atop the table with 9 points.
MHS Head Coach Maurice Cummings spoke on the golden opportunity the team have received, and his hopes of them going all the way.
“Well, I think it’s a great opportunity for the lads to display their talent. At the school, we have a very strong culture of football. I mean, throughout all levels, male and female football is being played. So, this is just an opportunity for them to display their talents, and I think it should do them very well, because we know that sports is very important,” Cummings related to Guyana Times Sport.

“Yes, I do. I think I have some experienced players and I have some very determined players. So, combining these two assets, I think the team will go very far in the tournament, and I’m looking to go all the way to secure the victory,” The MHS Coach responded to an inquiry on his perception of his team’s chances of success.
Patentia Secondary finished the group stage with 6 points, and their only loss came against Mackenzie High.
Head Coach Kelvin Roberts claimed his team took some time to adjust to the level of competition, but claims that if they apply themselves, they can extend their stay in the tournament.
“Adjusting a little bit. We just need a little bit more field training, because we’re not getting the field to train right now. But we’re trying our best to settle. Only thing we need is the players them to dedicate themselves a little bit more towards sports,” Roberts shared with this publication.
Coach Roberts added, “We would reach far. It was just a slight misunderstanding this afternoon [during their only loss], but I feel we’ll upgrade. But I feel we’ll step up on the next game, because we must win the next game to get ourselves far. So, I’m going to step up a little bit more, and the players need to step up.”
Patentia will kick off the Round-of-16 action with a contest against Ann’s Grove Secondary from 11:00hrs on Saturday morning, while Mackenzie High will get their time in the sun on Sunday against West Ruimveldt Secondary, beginning at 15:00hrs.