Laxey and St Mary’s will go head-to-head for the Ascot Hotel Junior Cup at the Bowl on Saturday afternoon.

The Miners will go into the final as marginal favourites having finished three places and 11 points better off than their opponents in the Combination One standings.

The Saints, however, have picked up form in this competition and knocked out one of the cup favourites St George’s in the quarter-finals.

The pair’s two league meetings ended with a victory apiece, the Bowl outfit winning 4-2 in August before the Glen Road side won November’s return fixture 4-3.

St Mary’s are one of only two teams to inflict defeat on Laxey this season, the other being Combination One champions Douglas High School Old Boys.

Laxey edged out Old Boys on penalties after a mammoth shoot-out in Saturday’s semi-final at Blackberry Lane.

Paul Callow’s side’s success has been based around the club’s latest crop of youngsters combined with a few more experienced heads.

Joe Walters, George Burrows and Stan Manning have all enjoyed breakthrough campaign and have recently earned call-ups to Steve Moran’s first-team squad.

Complimenting the talented teens are some of the Glen Road outfit’s stalwarts in the shape of Gary Williams, Darryl Haslett and David Corlett.

Former Michael United centre-back Dave Reynolds as well as John Callow and John Palmer have all made influential cameos as well suggesting a good strength in depth.

Indeed player-manager Callow has admitted he will have a headache whittling the squad down to a match-day 16 this week as he is the only doubt with an injury.

St Mary’s too have their own raft of youngsters who could yet guide their side to a first Junior Cup success.

Joe Bergquist and Josh Molyneux have been among the goals in recent week and both have featured in the club’s first-team squads at points this campaign.

Attacker Dean Spencer, ex-junior island cap Paul Doyle and former Old Boys and Douglas and District man Jay Corrin add some much-needed experience to a side keen to finish the campaign with a flurry.

Kick-off in this one is 3pm.