THE REBUILD BEGINS - Patrick makes plans to restart youth programme with Innswood

Newly appointed Innswood High School head coach Anthony Patrick says he is determined to use his vast coaching experience to build a strong and competitive football programme while helping to raise the profile of the institution’s football in Jamaica.

Patrick, who guided St Catherine High School last season, has signed a four-year contract with the St Catherine-based institution after his contract with his former employers was not renewed last month.

The veteran coach, who has built a reputation for transforming football programmes wherever he has coached, said he is excited about the challenge that lies ahead at Innswood.

“It is a four-year project and I am really happy about it. It will be extended much longer than that, but I am just looking at the four years for now and trying to build from this first year from the ground up,” said Patrick.

“It has been a long while since they have been to the second round of the schoolboy football competition.”

Patrick noted that rebuilding the programme will not be easy, but he believes he has assembled a capable coaching staff to help achieve the school’s objectives.

“There are going to be challenges but I am looking forward to those challenges. I am really happy and grateful for this opportunity because I have a very reputable and capable assistant in Theo Brown going there with me,” he said.

“Brown won the Manning Cup with Bridgeport High School in 2006 and he has also played in the Jamaica Premier League with a number of teams. He has been with me for a long time and so he is a very knowledgeable and capable individual.”

Patrick enjoyed considerable success during his time at St Catherine High, leading the school to Walker Cup Knockout titles in 2019, 2021, and 2025. He also guided the school to the 2024 Manning Cup final, where they lost 3-1 to Kingston College.

Patrick led Bridgeport High School to the Manning Cup title in 2006 and also transformed the fortunes of Dinthill Technical, taking the school to the finals of both the daCosta Cup and Ben Francis Cup in 2016 after more than three decades without major success.

He pointed out that his appointment will help attract talented young footballers to Innswood High.

“I think me being at Innswood will help to raise the school’s football profile a lot and I am sure that a lot of youngsters in this area will want to attend the school now,” said Patrick.

“I am happy for this opportunity to try and build something very special and solid there. I want to ask all the students of Innswood to come on board and support the programme and let us try to build something great here.”

The vastly experienced Patrick shared that rebuilding struggling programmes has become a hallmark of his coaching career.

“I think that when you look at me and how I go about doing things, and the schools that I have coached over the years, you look at Bridgeport, St Catherine High and, to a lesser extent, Dinthill. After Dinthill was in the wilderness for more than 35 years, I went there in 2016 and took them to the final of the daCosta Cup and the final of the Ben Francis Cup,” he stated.

“I then went back to St Catherine in 2016 and turned the tables around there, so it is really about me building from the ground up to the top,” Patrick underscored.

“I think when you look at Racing United, I took them from the St Catherine Division Two in 2017 to the Jamaica Premier League and I also took Naggo Head to the Premier League as well,” he said.