The second set of games in the ISSA Wata Manning Cup quarterfinals will be on in earnest today as teams battle for survival.

There will be three games on today, and most eyes will be at Stadium East with two sumptuous games as Charlie Smith go up against Jamaica College in a top-of-the-table clash in Zone A at 4:15, while it’s a do-or-die situation between Calabar High and St Andrew Technical High (STATHS), both losers in their first games in Zone B at 2:00 pm.

A win for Charlie Smith or Jamaica College (JC) could seal a spot in the semi-final if the other Zone A game between Excelsior High and Hydel High is drawn on Wednesday.

Charlie Smith and JC are coming off identical 2-1 wins over Hydel High and Excelsior on Saturday and are on three points each, and they know that six points will be good enough to book a spot in the semi-final either as group winners or runners-up.

It should be a close encounter in which JC are fancied to emerge as winners, having the better all-round team stacked with quality all over the pitch. However, Charlie Smith has some quality players who can hurt their opponents, setting the stage for an intriguing encounter.

JC will start as favourites and rightly so, and will be more confident following their 5-0 win over Charlie Smith last year.

In the curtain raiser at Stadium East, both Calabar and STATHS are coming off 0-1 and 1-4 defeats to Vauxhall High and Eltham High, respectively, and they are hoping to rebound and get themselves back into contention.

A defeat for either would almost mean elimination, which they can’t afford to happen. They should be fighting tooth and nail for survival.

In the third match of the day, Eltham High and Vauxhall High clash in a top-of-the-table Zone B match at the Spanish Town Prison Oval, looking to book their spots in the semi-final. Both teams are on three points. Match time is 3:00 pm.