Jerren Nixon replaces McLean as North East coach.

T&T Newsday Reports.
20-Sept-2005 - Striker Jerren Nixon has been given the role as interim coach of North East Stars as a replacement for Guyanese James McLean. Reports circulated throughout the football fraternity over the weekend that McLean left the club to return to his native Guyana, but no official word was given concerning the circumstances surrounding his abrupt departure. Nonetheless, the 2005 season has been a struggle for North East, who have looked a shadow of the dominant force that saw them capture the 2004 Pro League title. A knee injury to Nixon earlier in the season derailed their progress, while a number of players, including Guyanese Abassi McPherson, Kayode McKinnon and Carey Harris were sent packing for disciplinary reasons. There were also reports that McLean had problems dealing with his team, and that may have hastened his exit.
The 32-year-old Nixon, who made his international comeback last season, will take up duties this afternoon, when North East meets Defence Force in a 16th round match-up at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo at 5 pm. Both teams met at the Larry Gomes Stadium, Arima on Friday last in the First Citizens Bank (FCB) Cup quarter-final, with Defence Force prevailing 2-1.

Villa vs The Pros.

By: Joel Villafana - ttproleague.
21-Apr-2005 - This Week---North East Stars Striker Jerren Nixon.

Villa—Jerren what does football really mean to you?

Nixon—It means everything-its my whole life-its what I live for.

Villa—Last season you were the league’s top goal scorer, have you set yourself any specific goals this season?

Nixon—Well obviously I would love to do better than last year and achieve more and I assure you once the opportunity arise, I will do my best to try and improve on last season’s performance.

Villa—What did it mean for you personally and for North East Stars to win the league last season?

Nixon—It certainly meant a lot for the people of Sangre Grande, it is the first time a football team coming from that area achieved such an honour. Well for me personally it meant a whole lot to be able to come back home and help North East Stars achieve so much—it really was a great feeling.

Villa—North East Stars got off to a losing start this season going down to W Connection 4-0—What went wrong?

Nixon—Well although you go to win every game you play, you just can’t—football is a funny game, and since I have been at North East Stars that was the worst game we have played—everyone played badly, but even a champion team is entitled to one bad game and I hope that was ours and we move on from there.

Villa—Is North East Stars feeling any pressure this season, with everyone coming hard to beat you?

Nixon—Yes there is pressure on us—everyone wants to beat the champion, most of the guys on our team have never really achieved something of this magnitude—so yes there is pressure, but we just have to buckle down and deal with it.

Villa—What do you think are the club’s chances of successfully defending the league title?

Nixon—I see no reason why we can’t do it again, basically we have the same team, we have just lost one player. I believe we can do even better this year; we are also in the Concacaf Club Championships this year and we are eager to impress and prove what a small club from Sangre Grande can do at that level.

Villa—Jerren, looking at the defence of the league title—where do you thing the league title will come from?

Nixon—Well I don’t believe anyone is a real threat to us, I think our biggest threat is ourselves—If we go into our games thinking we have already won it, then we are in trouble. We have to approach each game with a certain amount of respect for everybody and then play hard to win—we are very much capable of matching and beating every team in the league.

Villa—How do you compare the standard of the T&T Pro League to some of the League’s you have played in Switzerland and Scotland?

Nixon—Since I have been here—every year the standard just seems to be getting better and better and the only thing the League’s in Europe have over us is proper organization—but they can’t beat us with skill. However, I hope and pray one day the T&T Pro League will be one of the top leagues in Concacaf—that’s my vision.

Villa—Which player do you admire the most in the Pro League?

Nixon—David Atiba Charles of W Connection

Villa—Which player do you admire most internationally?

Nixon—Chelsea’s Frank Lampard

Villa—Have you been thinking about life after football—Any plans?

Nixon—Of course, right now I have already set up a business selling phone accessories, which my wife is handling so I can concentrate on football and when I am finished playing, I have some other ventures in mind.

Villa—Jerren, you have played all over the world and achieved quite a bit—you have come back home and led North East Stars to the League and F.A. Cup titles—what is your motivation to continue playing?

Nixon—My motivation is my wife, she has always instilled in me since I have come back home, that I need to give something back to Trinidad and Tobago’s football—the people of Trinidad and Tobago have never really gotten an opportunity to see me play at the highest level. The North East Stars club is also a big factor, I want to continue to see them moving forward.

Villa—Are you still enjoying your football?

Nixon—Yes of course—I wouldn’t be playing if I weren’t enjoying it—the day I stop enjoying it I would hang up my boots.

Villa—Have you considered coaching in the future?

Nixon—Yes ever since I was growing up, coaching is something I have always wanted to do—but I am now 32 years old, and I still feel I have some more to offer on the field of play for now.

Villa—Do you still have the desire to represent Trinidad and Tobago?

Nixon—Once I am playing football professionally, I will always have that desire to represent my country—that’s every footballer dream.

Villa—Do you think you still have what it takes to play at the international level?

Nixon—Yes, definitely.

Villa—What do you think are the chances of this current Trinidad and Tobago team to qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany?

Nixon—Once everybody comes together and everyone has the same goal and desire—our chances are as good as any.

Villa—What are your thoughts on a foreign coach leading Trinidad and Tobago?

Nixon—For me it doesn’t matter if the coach is foreign or local, once he is equipped ton carry us to a World Cup—my job is to play.

No Stopping Jerren Nixon.

By Joel Villafana.
28-Jul-2004 - He already has 22 goals in the bag, and is currently the Pro League’s leading goal scorer and Jeron Nixon is still not satisfied.
The experienced North East Stars striker has set himself a clear mandate—finish the season as the top goal scorer and guide North East Stars to the league title.
Now 31 years of age, Nixon says he always backs himself to score goals, “I have always been a goal scorer and I just enjoy scoring goals,” says Nixon.
The North East marksman said “My power of concentration has grown which has helped my game a whole lot, it is certainly pleasing to be the leading goal scorer at this stage.”
Nixon now a father of two became a professional footballer back in 1994, when he joined Scottish giants Dundee United, he eventually moved to Switzerland and spent five years at Zurich and was then persuaded to join St Gallen after they won the Swiss league and Nixon had the opportunity to play in the Champions League.
In 2002 he returned home in order to give his eldest son Jeron Jr. the opportunity to have a good education—and decided he needed a rest from the rigors of professional football.
However, after settling down Nixon was approached by local football club North East Stars to join their ranks, after serious consideration in September, 2003 the talented left footed striker joined the Sangre Grande based team.
He played a huge role in North East winning the F.A. Cup last season and placing 3rd in the league.
Nixon believes North East Stars is a much better team than most would give them credit, “a lot of people underestimate the Stars, they are a very good unit even without a Jeron Nixon—and they have grown from strength to strength.”
North East Stars are the current leaders in the T&T Pro League and their top striker believes they have what it takes to become the champions—the talented striker said, “all the players have the belief that we can pull it off.”
As to whether or not he believes he should be on the national team, Nixon says, “everybody would have their opinions, but I do believe I still have a contribution to make and if today or tomorrow the national coach calls me up I will be more than ready to serve my country.”
He reminded the Pro League’s Website that he never announced that he retired from international football, but as for now he is very happy to focus his attention on club football with North East Stars.
However Nixon believes the national team stand a good chance of qualifying for the World Cup Finals in Germany 2006, if the players have that burning desire and a strong dream to reach the World Cup Finals then its possible,” says Jeron Nixon.
Nixon was part of Bertille St. Clair’s youth team that qualified for the 1991 Youth World Cup in Portugal and says, “qualifying for a senior World Cup Finals will change Trinidad and Tobago and unify the country. His ambitions are now to guide North East Stars to the league title and still hopes to be part of the national team that will qualify for World Cup 2006 in Germany.

£20m man is back to where it all began.

By Alan Pattullo - The Scotsman.
29-May-2004 - The week after Ivan Golac has been back in Scotland, spreading his own brand of sunshine liberally about Dundee, it is strange to bump into Jerren Nixon again, the player the former Dundee United manager made and then almost broke again.
Nixon was the first of the subsequent wave of Trinidad and Tobago players to land in Scotland, the first to make the claim: have gloves, will travel. His name might remain one of the most enduring, too.
Few comments have stuck so rigidly to a player as the one Golac made about Nixon: "that boy, he’s worth £20million, you know," he gushed at one post-match press briefing. Like anything he said, it had to be taken with a pinch of salt but the back pages of newspapers don’t always cope well with the exaggeration of others. Nixon was branded a failure when he subsequently, and not surprisingly, failed to live up to a value which even now is commanded only by galacticos.
He left Scotland 16 months later with little fanfare, for an 80th of the value placed on his head by the inimitable Golac.
And that, some predicted, was that. Just another player tossed into the dustcart of history, lost in the broad sweep of a game that could no longer cater for tricky but maddeningly inconsistent wingers. The assumption, though, proved wrong. Nixon and his black mittens thrived in Switzerland, first with FC Zurich and then with St Gallen. In all he spent eight seasons in the country, exposing the folly of those who questioned his ability to withstand the long, cold European winters. With St Gallen he experienced both the Champions League and the UEFA Cup, from which competition they bundled Chelsea in 2000.
At Zurich, Celtic were conquered 5-3 on aggregate in the same competition, Nixon returning to a city where he revelled almost exactly a decade ago with his Scottish Cup-winning Dundee United team-mates.
Strange that he should be deposited back in Scotland with the Trinidad and Tobago tour party so soon after the tenth anniversary celebrations, although more’s the pity he was not here a week ago, when he might have joined his former Tannadice team-mates who gathered in Dundee, along with Golac, to remember their club’s maiden, and sole, Scottish Cup success.
He has kept in touch with Golac intermittently since. "I don’t think he has my number now I have moved away from Switzerland," says Nixon, who now plays in his homeland with North East Stars. He isn’t sore with Golac for applying a pressure which few could have borne. Indeed, he credits the Serb and Scotland with building him into the player he is, and for helping him develop a spirit of endurance. It is why, he says, he is back here with the international squad nine years after making his debut, able to harbour a dream of bowing out at the World Cup finals in Germany in 2006.
"At Dundee United I learned the most important thing - how to be a professional," he says. "Because I came from a country where everything is laid back, you tend to be a bit relaxed in terms of training and time-keeping. Coming to Scotland was a foundation for me."
For someone adhering to such a lackadaisical lifestyle, Dundee United back in 1993 must have been mystifying. The club remained under the iron grip of Jim McLean, but with Golac in charge of team affairs prancing about in parks was not uncommon, nor were discussions on such pressing topics as the best ever Rolling Stones LP.
"I never had any run-ins with Jim McLean," he smiles, although he did have one with the law - leaving Dundee without paying the mortgage on his flat in the city. But the memories he has all seem to be positive, and it is instructive to remember that following in the footsteps Nixon was brave enough to leave are United’s latest recruits from the West Indies - Jason Scotland and Collin Samuel.
"The club was great, and the fans were brilliant to me," he says, having completed training yesterday with the Trinidad and Tobago squad at Livingston. "I loved the fans because they appreciated me, and the way I played. And I appreciated them for giving me that support." He even downplays that mammoth transfer fee placed on his head by Golac.
"It wasn’t really baggage," he says. "Anyone can say someone’s worth £1million, £10million or £20million. You are only worth the money a club is prepared to pay for you. That’s the way I looked at it, but it seems other people might have looked at it differently."
Whatever the value placed on him by his manager, he never made the starting line up on that famous day at Hampden Park, a decade and a week ago. Still only 20, Nixon had to content himself with a place on the bench. He came on in the second half for Andy McLaren, much to the relief of the Trinidad and Tobago television executives who had decided to take a live feed from the Scottish Cup final for the first ever time.
"It was a good feeling because the game was shown live back home," says Nixon. "And I just wanted to get out there, so the people back home could see someone playing from their country in the cup final."
A cup winner’s medal at 20 was reward for Nixon’s pluck in coming to a country so removed from his own, to a club he’d never heard of. He wants to make it back to the banks of the Tay to visit old friends, to salute the place where he said he became a man. Now, though, the battles are different ones, and concern mounting troubles back home.
"The World Cup is our main focus," he says. "We have to start somewhere, and we are now re-building a squad. We are just taking each step at a time.
Everything is in place with the coaching staff under Bertille St Clair, everything is blending together nicely. We need that because the thing is we need to get the country back on track, and not just the football team.
"The way the country is going back home is unbelievable," he continues. "Every 12 hours there is a murder or something. The coach has said how football brings everyone together again. The result against Iraq last week was a start, and I am looking forward to hopefully a similar result against Scotland."

The Nixons — football in their blood.

By Joel Bailey.
6-Nov-2003 - Jerren and Kathy-Ann Nixon are like an everyday couple — young, vibrant and energetic. But when you look at them closely you can detect a passion they have that will never fade away — football. Like Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery (track and field) as well as Lleyton Hewitt and Kim Clijsters (tennis), both Jerren and Kathy-Ann ply their trade in the same sport, a sport they have pursued since childhood. The 30-year-old Jerren has been a standout at both senior and junior levels since 1990 while his 27-year-old wife has been a feature on the national squad since the mid 1990s. And, since their marriage on January 2, 1999 in their hometown of Sangre Grande, both have successfully combined sport and family life with astonishing results. According to Kathy-Ann, the pair knew each other from their school days, with Jerren starring for St Augustine Senior Comprehensive and Kathy for North Eastern College. While Jerren had a successful stint in Scotland and Switzerland, Kathy was a member of the CCC Net Shakers in the national women’s league.
“We met again during a Shell Caribbean Cup match at the Arima Velodrome (Arima Municipal Stadium) in 1997” said Jerren. And, as they say, the rest is history. Taking a look back at their careers, Jerren led St Augustine to the Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) league title in 1989 and was a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Under-20 team in the 1991 World Youth Cup in Portugal. That team was coached by Bertille St Clair, captained by Dwight Yorke and including past and present national players Angus Eve, Clayton Ince, Richard Theodore and Michael McComie. The left-footed striker excelled at the local level with the now defunct ECM Motown and, through the work of agent Majeed Mohammed, signed for Dundee United in Scotland in November 1993. His career continued at the international stage, becoming the first Trinidadian footballer to win a final’s medal in Britain after his club defeated Glasgow Rangers 1-0 to win the Scottish FA Cup in 1994. But he suffered a massive setback when, after a change of coaching personnel at Dundee Utd after the 1994-95 season, he was sold to FC Zurich in Switzerland.
Despite trial stints with Southampton and Watford in England, he remained a feature at Zurich until 2000 when he moved on to St Gallen, where he stayed until the end of 2002. After playing for the Zurich and St Gallen women’s teams, Kathy-Ann and her husband, as well as their sons Jerren Jnr (five) and Jerrell (two) returned home early this year and have now settled back to life in Sangre Grande. How do they cope with their children and their sport? “It’s hard,” said Kathy-Ann. “Sometimes I have to get a babysitter when we both have training and, at times, I had to bring them with me. But (as they are) getting bigger, I can bring them now and they can play with each other (on the sidelines).” Will they let their children follow in their footsteps? “As kids,” noted Jerren, “we have to let them explore and whatever they choose I’ll support them 100 percent.” The defensive midfielder is a member of Joe Public WFC, who finished second in the league stage of the Trinidad and Tobago Women’s Football Association (TTWFA) 2003 season. Jerren, after joining North East Stars in August, has slammed 10 goals for the Sangre Grande-based team, who are currently third on the standings in the T&T Pro League. Both see themselves as role models for up-and-coming players with Kathy, a senior member on the youthful national women’s team, aspires to become a coach after hanging up her boots. Jerren, on the other hand, wants to keep on playing as long as possible, but is satisfied about the way his career has been proceeding so far. And, he has one advice for those seeking to play overseas. “Most of the footballers here (in TT) are aspiring to play abroad but one must be able to adapt to the different cultures in order to survive”, he said. And there is no doubt that both Jerren and Kathy-Ann will succeed in their endeavours, at the home and on the footballing field.

Jerron Nixon plays tomorrow for NE Stars.

TnT Guardian Reports.
30-Aug-2003 - Jerren Nixon is expected to make his T&T Pro-League Senior Division debut tomorrow for local club North East Stars after he was given his international clearance yesterday.
Nixon, who last played for the national side some five years ago, signed with the Sangre Grande-based club 10-days ago.
Nixon, formerly of Swiss-club St Gallen, FC Zurich in Switzerland and Scotland’s Dundee United got the all-clear when his documents were forwarded to the T&T Pro-League office in St James yesterday.
Nixon is now free to make his debut against Caledonia AIA tomorrow, before the NE Stars home crowd in Sangre Grande.
An elated Stars manager Darryl Mahabir confirmed that Nixon had received his clearance and will definitely be in his club line-up tomorrow.
Mahabir said, “Nixon is a great capture for us, a player of his calibre who knows a lot about professionalism and will help us a great deal.
“He has played a number of years in Europe and his experience will help take our club to a higher level,” ended Mahabir.
Meanwhile, national and former Joe Public players Nigel Pierre and Keyeno Thomas will have to wait a while longer before making their debut for league leaders CL Financial San Juan Jabloteh.
Jerry Hospedales, Jabloteh chairman said that both Thomas and Pierre began training with the club in July, but will make their respective club debuts at different times.
He explained, “Thomas current contract with Joe Public comes to an end on Sunday August 31, and it will not be renewed by Joe Public which means he will be a free agent.
“So he is expected to sign with us early next week, however Pierre’s situation is little bit different in that he is still under contract with Joe Public until sometime next year.
“The rules clearly state that a club cannot register a player before the transfer windows opens back up and we intend to obey it,” he explained. The T&T Pro-League transfer window opens on October 1.

Arnold Dwarika, Jerron Nixon off to China.

By Shaun Fuentes.
11-Jul-2003 - Local footballers Arnold Dwarika and Jerren Nixon left on Friday for China where they will spend a week in Beijing on trial with professional club team Beijing Guoan.
Dwarika, a member of Vibe CT 105 W Connection, and Nixon who has been out of contract for the past few months received the invitations from the club through local businessman Hugh Leong Poi. Nixon was last based in Switzerland up to January.
Guoan were in Trinidad in January when they held a President s Eleven to a 2-2 draw at the Hasely Crawford Stadium. They are currently campaigning in the Chinese Division 1 A.
Leong Poi was also helpful in getting striker Gary Glasgow to sign a one year deal with another Chinese First Division team, Guangzhou Xiangxue where he is currently the topscorer with four goals in six matches.
"The club has been looking for players and they are well aware that players from Trinidad and Tobago are capable of doing well. They came here and saw it for themselves earlier this year and now the opportunity has come for both Arnold and Jerren to go out there and get contracts," said Leong Poi. "Hopefully things will go well with them over the ten days." Both players are likely to play their first trial match early next week.

T&T's Jerron Nixon back in the reckoning.

 5-Dec-2001 - Former Caribbean footballer of the year Jerren Nixon could return for the 2002 Gold Cup after a short-lived retirement from the national side. 
Trinidad and Tobago technical director Rene Simoes revealed on Tuesday that Nixon had announced his retirement in June around the same time that team captain Russell Latapy and Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke had called it quits. 
However the 28-year-old Switzerland-based winger has since declared that he is willing to rejoin the "Soca Warriors". 
Simoes is still uncertain whether Nixon would get his chance in Miami, but said that he won't rule out the talented left footed attacker indefinitely. 
"The last time I asked him (to play) he said he wanted to retire," said Simoes. "Then he said he wanted to return... He's a player that won't put out. If he is in good spirits, we would see." 
Nixon last wore the red, white and black stripe in a friendly match on June 10 away to Panama which the Warriors drew 0-0. 
The game was more famous for the non-involvement of Yorke and Anthony Rougier, who both remained in Trinidad, and the fact that Nixon was injured in the match largely went unnoticed due to the controversy created by the pair. 
So too did the reaction of the frustrated Nixon who told then coach Ian Porterfield that he was through with playing for T&T. 
A rejuvenated Nixon could be a major boost for the Warriors who have clearly suffered for a quality left boot in the run-up to the North American championship. 
The Warriors have secured just one international friendly against Guatemala on January 16 before they face Costa Rica in their opening Group C match in Miami.
Unheralded Caribbean outfit, Martinique, complete the three team group from which the top two progress to the quarter-finals. 
"Of course always you want more time to prepare," he said. "I was expecting to have these matches to try out new players but now we don't have enough time or opportunity to do this. 
"But... let's do it." 

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