T&T's Anthony Creese new Laurels coach

[E-man]

T&T's Anthony Creese new Laurels coach
Express

Monday, October 15th 2007

Trinidadian Anthony Creese has been installed as head coach of the Northampton Laurels, an American women's football club team containing current Trinidad and Tobago players Maylee Attin-Johnson and Kennya Cordner.

The Laurels were the 2006 Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) Eastern Conference-South Division runners-up in their sophomore season.

Creese, formerly of Port of Spain, is a former defender who played at East Stroudsburg University, where he was named College Soccer Athlete of the Year in 1993. Creece also represented Trinidad & Tobago at the U-19 and U-23 levels. After a successful playing career at ESU, Creece went on to play for the Philadelphia Freedom in the USISL before spending four years as the assistant coach at his Alma Mater ESU.

"I look forward to the opportunity to coach in the WPSL, the league is indeed one of the top women's league on earth, I am also delighted to be coaching in the Lehigh Valley" said Creece. "I have spent over sixteen years playing and coaching in the Lehigh Valley and surrounding counties. I view this appointment as a testament to my committment to soccer in this region."

A USSF licenced coach, Creece has spent the last 11 years as head soccer coach of Notre Dame High School in Stroudsburg, PA, where he was named the Colonial League Girls Soccer Coach of the Year in 1997 & 1999, Colonial League Boys Soccer Coach of the Year in 2004 & 2005, PIAA District XI Championship Coach in 2003 & 2004. He was also Pocono Record Boys Soccer Coach of the Year in 2003, 2004 & 2005.

"We are delighted to have Anthony join the Laurels this season, he brings tremendous playing and coaching experience to the team", said Laurels Director of Coaching Warren Salandy. His knowledge of the game will most certainly assist us in our push for another Eastern Conference play-off berth, I look forward to working with Coach Creece this season, he is a proven leader", Salandy added.
 

[kicker]

I remember Creese- he played at Mucurap & Fatima....

congrats & good luck.

[Jahyouth]

I remember Creese- he played at Mucurap & Fatima....

congrats & good luck.

Little known fact:
Creese was one of the first junior sec ---> "prestige school" transfers.  He went to Fatima in the mid-80s.  That move ushered in the era of transfer-mania from junior secs into St. Mary's, Fatima, QRC and most of all St. Anthony's that changed the face of Secondary School football forever.

[kicker]

I remember Creese- he played at Mucurap & Fatima....

congrats & good luck.

Little known fact:
Creese was one of the first junior sec ---> "prestige school" transfers.  He went to Fatima in the mid-80s.  That move ushered in the era of transfer-mania from junior secs into St. Mary's, Fatima, QRC and most of all St. Anthony's that changed the face of Secondary School football forever.

Fact?

I think that's based on your memory.

Gally transferred to Fatima- and he was way before Creese...and I'm pretty sure there were others in his time and before.

Creese was probably one of the more high profile ones in the modern era. (our modern era...ah know we's old timers now  )....but I feel that kinda thing was going on from the earlies....

[Jahyouth]

I remember Creese- he played at Mucurap & Fatima....

congrats & good luck.

Little known fact:
Creese was one of the first junior sec ---> "prestige school" transfers.  He went to Fatima in the mid-80s.  That move ushered in the era of transfer-mania from junior secs into St. Mary's, Fatima, QRC and most of all St. Anthony's that changed the face of Secondary School football forever.

Fact?

I think that's based on your memory.

Gally transferred to Fatima- and he was way before Creese...and I'm pretty sure there were others in his time and before.

Creese was probably one of the more high profile ones in the modern era. (our modern era...ah know we's old timers now  )....but I feel that kinda thing was going on from the earlies....

Notice I said "one of", not "the first".  What is more important though is that the numbers of transfers went up significantly after Creese.  Not saying that he was the cause, but he was a forerunner to the trend.

Sure Gally transferred to Fatima, but was the team comprised of 40 - 50% transfers as we commonly saw in the early - mid 90s?

[palos]

I remember Creese- he played at Mucurap & Fatima....

congrats & good luck.

Little known fact:
Creese was one of the first junior sec ---> "prestige school" transfers.  He went to Fatima in the mid-80s.  That move ushered in the era of transfer-mania from junior secs into St. Mary's, Fatima, QRC and most of all St. Anthony's that changed the face of Secondary School football forever.

Fact?

I think that's based on your memory.

Gally transferred to Fatima- and he was way before Creese...and I'm pretty sure there were others in his time and before.

Creese was probably one of the more high profile ones in the modern era. (our modern era...ah know we's old timers now  )....but I feel that kinda thing was going on from the earlies....

Gally transferred from Tranquil.  The junior and senior secondary schools only came into effect in the late 70's early 80's.  Transferring between schools had been going on fuh a long long time before Creese or Gally.

Creese may have been one of the first players to transfer from a junior or senor secondary to a so called prestige school, but that was just more a matter of semantics than anything.  Carlton Franco in THIS INTERVIEW went from St Crispin's EC to Progressive just to play football.

Well after St. Crispin's, a gentleman by the name of Freddy Townsend (the Secretary of School Sports) who always wanted young players to get an education, wanted to set up a sort of scholarship programme with a secondary school. He tried with QRC but it didn't work. He then went to Progressive and that year Progressive invited about six of us to come to do an interview, but only two showed up, Ken Henry and I. They gave both of us scholarships. When we got the scholarships, we changed the whole football team around in terms of progress and success. We were so important to the football team and the school that Mr. Holder turned around and gave scholarships to Russell Latapy's uncle, a guy by the name of Hunty Waldron, Everald Cummings' brother, a guy by the name of Philbert Cummings and we basically built a whole football team around scholarships. Mr. Holder felt that Ken and I, particularly me, were the ones who brought fame and recognition to the school. So what he did as a young man growing up, I didn't come from a rich family, he made arrangements for me to get a certain amount of money every month (at the time that they were paying teachers). Now that was under the table [laughs]. So I was getting some form of recompense for playing football way back then.

[kicker]

I remember Creese- he played at Mucurap & Fatima....

congrats & good luck.

Little known fact:
Creese was one of the first junior sec ---> "prestige school" transfers.  He went to Fatima in the mid-80s.  That move ushered in the era of transfer-mania from junior secs into St. Mary's, Fatima, QRC and most of all St. Anthony's that changed the face of Secondary School football forever.

Fact?

I think that's based on your memory.

Gally transferred to Fatima- and he was way before Creese...and I'm pretty sure there were others in his time and before.

Creese was probably one of the more high profile ones in the modern era. (our modern era...ah know we's old timers now  )....but I feel that kinda thing was going on from the earlies....

Notice I said "one of", not "the first".  What is more important though is that the numbers of transfers went up significantly after Creese.  Not saying that he was the cause, but he was a forerunner to the trend.

Sure Gally transferred to Fatima, but was the team comprised of 40 - 50% transfers as we commonly saw in the early - mid 90s?

Yeah yeah, I know what yuh saying....but the same way you identify Creese as the forerunner, a man could identify the transfer right before Creese as the forerunner......and so on and so on....

Up until I left Fatima ('95)- there were hardly if ever more than about 2 "pure footballing" transfers in a squad of 20 fellas... Now I hear it's alot different.

Anyways, big up Creese....good luck coaching the lady ballers...

[vb]

Ah curious if Creese graduated from an American University, it means he had GRADES!!

So, my question is , other than getting his grades from Fatima,did he have such grades when transferring to Fatima.

If he did, hten the transfer is a moot point. I know of non players who transferred from Jrs. Secs, but they had the grades.

Ronnie Simmons and G. Rodriguez came from other schools, but they had Grades.

VB

[Deeks]

Transferring is nothing new. Steven Gomes -Trinity > QRC. Rolf Clark - Woodbrook > QRC. Sheldon Gomes-Holy Cross>QRC. Russel Texeira -St. James Sec> CIC. Keston Nancoo-Woodbrook>CIC. Luciano Woodley-Belmont>CIC. Patrick Wilkinson-QRC>Belmont. Leo brewster-Benedicts>Technical. And on. And on.......

[vb]

Deeks,

ah think you miss the point.

We all know that transfers take place becz of football.

I am saying that in the case of Mr. Creese, did he have the grades,or was it ONLY becz of football?

In my time nobody ever got transferred to Fatima only becz of football.

VB

[berris]

Gally transferred from Tranquil.  The junior and senior secondary schools only came into effect in the late 70's early 80's.  Transferring between schools had been going on fuh a long long time before Creese or Gally.

Creese may have been one of the first players to transfer from a junior or senor secondary to a so called prestige school, but that was just more a matter of semantics than anything.  Carlton Franco in THIS INTERVIEW went from St Crispin's EC to Progressive just to play football.

Well after St. Crispin's, a gentleman by the name of Freddy Townsend (the Secretary of School Sports) who always wanted young players to get an education, wanted to set up a sort of scholarship programme with a secondary school. He tried with QRC but it didn't work. He then went to Progressive and that year Progressive invited about six of us to come to do an interview, but only two showed up, Ken Henry and I. They gave both of us scholarships. When we got the scholarships, we changed the whole football team around in terms of progress and success. We were so important to the football team and the school that Mr. Holder turned around and gave scholarships to Russell Latapy's uncle, a guy by the name of Hunty Waldron, Everald Cummings' brother, a guy by the name of Philbert Cummings and we basically built a whole football team around scholarships. Mr. Holder felt that Ken and I, particularly me, were the ones who brought fame and recognition to the school. So what he did as a young man growing up, I didn't come from a rich family, he made arrangements for me to get a certain amount of money every month (at the time that they were paying teachers). Now that was under the table [laughs]. So I was getting some form of recompense for playing football way back then.

Palos, you is bout 60 sumtin 

[real madness]

Ah curious if Creese graduated from an American University, it means he had GRADES!!

So, my question is , other than getting his grades from Fatima,did he have such grades when transferring to Fatima.

If he did, hten the transfer is a moot point. I know of non players who transferred from Jrs. Secs, but they had the grades.

Ronnie Simmons and G. Rodriguez came from other schools, but they had Grades.

VB

i doh understand that comment in relation to transferring to kick ball..once a player had the bare minimum of 5 cxc passes and could kick ball he get in form 6..then there were the "creative" schools who let men in form 6 with 3-4 passes provided that these passes were not english/maths, then they do these exams in january after kicking ball in september (the minsitry/SSFL caught on this eventually).....if dey pass they continue to kick ball in upper 6, if dey fail well hard luck..the school will just have to find replacements.

[MEP]

I think what JahYouth is trying to say was back in 1977/78 a system was initiated whereby the top students from the junior sec schools were placed into schools like Saint, Fatima,etc.
Amongst the first students was Jean Lilywhite (who should be coaching a national youth team). It was an experiment that was short lived in the case of saints where they were all placed in a class called 4 x. Rather than being immersed with the rest of form four they were virtually ostracized by the school since they weren't considered "legitimate" students. As an adult thinking back ....the situation was so egregious since even their classroom was located in one of the remotest parts of the school.

[spideybuff]

Ah curious if Creese graduated from an American University, it means he had GRADES!!

yes he had grades and yes he has a degree now.

Men always needed to pass and exam to get into the ''prestige''schools prior to 6th form, so they had to have something. I know real men who train whole summer and then didn get into the schools cause they couldn pass the entrance exam. That change in the late 90's when all them other schools got a 6th form.

[vb]

Thank you Spidey,

that was my point, I am getting the impression by some posts here, that he only got into Fatima because of football. Although I am well aware that this goes on in some schools.

I am aware that in Fatima (in my time) you had to have the grades. The football was a bonus.

I am also aware that a max of two men were allowed into From VI (with minimum grades, five or six Os) based on sport. The glaring exception was Brian Lara 

Endless men get transfers to Fatima. But all the ballers had to have grades. I cah talk for Gally though, that was before I was born :-)

VB

[real madness]

Thank you Spidey,

that was my point, I am getting the impression by some posts here, that he only got into Fatima because of football. Although I am well aware that this goes on in some schools.

I am aware that in Fatima (in my time) you had to have the grades. The football was a bonus.

I am also aware that a max of two men were allowed into From VI (with minimum grades, five or six Os) based on sport. The glaring exception was Brian Lara 

Endless men get transfers to Fatima. But all the ballers had to have grades. I cah talk for Gally though, that was before I was born :-)

VB

i wasnt implying creese didnt have passes, i was trying to understand yuh comment

[fatman]

 VB Brian Lara was in most of my classes in form four and five, Brian repeated form five and I am positive he went into form six with at least six passes. He  initially entered in Fatima in form one having spent one year at a junior secondary. He was in  form 1 group 2 ,I was in group 1 dont give wrong information to people.  like most of us he liked shit, but he was not dunce he got his passes even though he would miss half of each term playing cricket. which form class were you in ?

[maxg]

not to sidetrack - though like we gone so ahready...I now realize ah was duncey, an probaly still am...   ...ah didn't get no passes 

doh ah know quite ah few ppl who fail highschool exams(some didn't even finish) and are quite successful, happy and major contributors to society today....buh dey probably didn't know dey was duncey too..

Continue with regular progammin nah 

[Bakes]

not to sidetrack - though like we gone so ahready...I now realize ah was duncey, an probaly still am...   ...ah didn't get no passes 

doh ah know quite ah few ppl who fail highschool exams(some didn't even finish) and are quite successful, happy and major contributors to society today....buh dey probably didn't know dey was duncey too..

Continue with regular progammin nah 

No shame in dat...I get mih lil 7 passes, doh one was ah 3 (in Maths, me ent business lol)...truth is some people juss doh test well. In TnT if dat was you yuh suck salt.  Di'n mean yuh wasn't smart doh.

[fatman]

maxg you seem to be implying some motive in my statement that did not exist.  I never suggested that if someone did not get passes he could be referred to as a dunce and not a contributor to society.  I was merely tyring to indicate that Lara was given no real favours by being allowed to write A Levels in Fatima College, and indicating that he was competent in his school work. Traditionally dunce is used to describe some one who was weak in school and I do not think he was that weak, I think your intervention was unneccesary.

[maxg]

Of course it was, as the whole thread discussion, since the topic was Mr. Creese attainment of a WPL coaching position, which had nothing to do with his playing days or his or anybody else academic achievements... I do know, however, talk is talk..some like dat,nuthen wrong with dat.  My only implication was a demonstration that being unable to do well in school exams(A-Levels), does not necessarily imply, inability to learn or not be bright. It was simply to remind ppl, besides I could and allowed to ole talk too,  that one system or exam does not make someone duncy(a very real view during my time- startin with common entrance). Let me assure you there was no ulterior motive or personal issue in commenting on that statement in your post, as many have been wrongfully judged by such...Never saying or thinking that you do or did..Cool meh bredda ?
No Shame B&S....possibly Deeks can confirm, in my time at QRC(became government school), there was a major shortage of qualified teachers..In form 1 & 2, probably lil before you Deeks, we had more free periods than classes..I will not get into the reasons why...but in the final analysis, many of us were not adequately prepared for such exams, thus "duncyness" by unfortunate circumstance(brain drain) and Governmental incapcity(dunciness or otherwise) at fulfilling that shortage.
I was able to attain my high school academic passes within a year and later University degrees - doh even work in those fields. Top 3 percentile in Quebec, top 10 in Canada..yet other life experiences and pursuits led me down another non-academic path....meh tail still happy

[vb]

VB Brian Lara was in most of my classes in form four and five, Brian repeated form five and I am positive he went into form six with at least six passes. He  initially entered in Fatima in form one having spent one year at a junior secondary. He was in  form 1 group 2 ,I was in group 1 dont give wrong information to people.  like most of us he liked shit, but he was not dunce he got his passes even though he would miss half of each term playing cricket. which form class were you in ?

Well boss I get this information from someone who was also in  school with Lara. He would have been in Form V and VI with Brian.

He also had a bit more to say about Lara and Form VI. But this has nothing to do withthe origin of this thread.

If you are correct, I am happy. It means Fatima has continued not to play the game as lowly as some other institutions.

I was one form ahead of Lara. Group One.

VB

[fatman]

maxg I actually share your sentiments, your assessment of our education system then and posssibly even now is correct. vb perhaps you can send a personal message to me as we definitely would have been at fatima together.

[vb]

Yes, we def. knew each other at one time.

I looking at ur name and trying to figure it out.

I remember a "fatman" who went on a school trip to Guadloupe with us.

I rememember a fat black Indian and a fattish Chiney I used to "rank up" with when he was in Form One.

But shit I cah remember every damn fat man dey had 

VB

[real madness]

just for the record..i doh have anything against people who dont have degrees or didnt go prestige schools at the end of the day that shit doesnt matter...my comment came about from the statement..."graduated from american university, it means he had grades"..the statement implies that an american degree equates to intelligence...some trinis (not all or the majority but a significant number of the) tend to heap scorn on uwi degrees and act like american degrees are better..i am sure creese is a smart guy, i dont know him personally only saw his as player and he was good player..

VB doh feel i attacking yuh..i doh have time for that with you or anyone on this forum..this forum is strictly for entertainment purposes..some people does take this shit too serious.

[Deeks]

Maxg, I can attest to the teacher's shortage situation in QRC 68/69/70. I remember we did not have a science teacher in the 2nd semester in 1st form. He left for UWI JA to study medicine. Guys, I understand want you all getting at. But plenty students to transfer to the "big school" for academics only also. These academic transfers were a common  affair. Especially for 6th form. If they played a sport that help even more. In my time if a student came from a small school with 7 Os with a couple of distinctions, he more than likely would have gotten into QRC. He did not have to a sportsman.

[fishs]

Maxg, I can attest to the teacher's shortage situation in QRC 68/69/70. I remember we did not have a science teacher in the 2nd semester in 1st form. He left for UWI JA to study medicine. Guys, I understand want you all getting at. But plenty students to transfer to the "big school" for academics only also. These academic transfers were a common  affair. Especially for 6th form. If they played a sport that help even more. In my time if a student came from a small school with 7 Os with a couple of distinctions, he more than likely would have gotten into QRC. He did not have to a sportsman.

Deeks yuh gorn tru, 2nd semester ? Yuh mean de easter term ? 
In my day in QRC 5 Os with 2 Bs and a sport BAM yuh in 6th form.
De only man I know transfer to QRC and play 1st team football was Stanley (Ah forget he last name ) an he came from Diego Sec into 6th form.
Honestly like a man say earlier on this flurry of transfer from school to to school to play football start after I leave maybe is simply because the junior secs was only up to 3rd form so the youths have to go to a next schiool anyway and the senior comps/secs up to 5th so to do A levels yuh also have to find a school.