Chad Bryan, Star Writer

Ralph Nelson, principal of Cross Keys High School in Manchester, has confirmed that a male student was stabbed and injured there yesterday afternoon.

According to Nelson, two male students had a dispute and a wound was inflicted on one, who had to be taken to hospital. The nature of the fight is unclear.

"Unfortunately, rather than taking the matter to the dean of discipline or principal, which is the culture and the practice, they went ahead and contested each other," Nelson said.

He said shortly after the incident, phone calls were placed to the community in which the injured student lives, and plans had to be implemented to stave off reprisals.

"His friends called members of the community and we had to manage an invasion from the community almost like a reprisal. The police were called in to control the school environment and they eventually left," he said.

The injured student remains in stable condition. It is unclear if the other student has been charged.

Nelson said the incident came at an unfortunate time, as the school was participating in the Super Eight Inter-secondary schools cricket competition.

He acknowledged that though the school has been known to be violent in the past, there has been a number of social-intervention programmes.

This stabbing is the second such school-based incident this week.

On Monday, a female student from Ardenne High in St Andrew was taken to hospital, after being stabbed by another female student.