Important announcement for all forum members.

[Dutty]

Kerwynn Jemmot once helped my elderly grandmother cross the busy intersection of Frederick Street

If there are any scouts trying to find info on him,I'm sure your club and the members grandmothers will benefit greatly from his altruism

[Babalawo]

I going and start talking about all the US players who does drink and drive, hang out in the ghetto, dog fight, and go to the Pink Pony. I find a way to help T&T progress. Now no US players will get contract in the MLS or foreign cause I talk about them having bad personailty traits.


Or and by the way I just saw Hyland help an old lady to cross the street and into a bus.  

Nah you dont get it. this is the BEST and maybe only rescource people have on players from our tiny island. the US have hundreds of other website to do research on their players, so your ploy wont work.  Maybe on smaller nations and Jamaica, etc.

[Babalawo]

Kerwynn Jemmot once helped my elderly grandmother cross the busy intersection of Frederick Street

If there are any scouts trying to find info on him,I'm sure your club and the members grandmothers will benefit greatly from his altruism

I see him give the whiner man in front of smokey & bonty ah dollar.

[kicker]

I think the level of dotishness communicated by some in this thread alone could possibly render this forum an inappropriate place to gather any credible info...

People are always so sensitive about their right to free speech that it clouds their sensibilities.  A right doesn't negate the accompanying responsibility, and just because you have the right and the freedom to say what you like, it doesn't make everything you say appropriate for the given situation.

The contention that an organization shouldn't put too much stock into what is being said here has nothing to do with what is being asked.  It is what it is (unless you think that Flex & McKenzie are being dishonest).  How organizations should go about getting their info is a different discussion.

All that is being asked for is some discretion in cases where indiscretion could have (and has had in the past) negative ramifications.  I don't see what all the fuss is about.

[palos]

I see him give the whiner man in front of smokey & bonty ah dollar.

Totally off topic but I curious.

Since when WINE become WHINE?  I doh get it.  Ah have meh theory dat is because of a jamaican influence whey dem does drop een a "HAYCH" before every vowel.  If dat theory is accurate...is EVERYTING we have to try and copy so?  Winin to de bess of my knowledge is a Trini term.  We so anxious to emulate others dat we have to copy how dey spell we own terminology too?  If daz de case..we might as well start heatin homelet, hegg, & happle.

Jes had to ask.  Proceed.

[Dutty]

I see him give the whiner man in front of smokey & bonty ah dollar.

Totally off topic but I curious.

Since when WINE become WHINE?  I doh get it.  Ah have meh theory dat is because of a jamaican influence whey dem does drop een a "HAYCH" before every vowel.  If dat theory is accurate...is EVERYTING we have to try and copy so?  Winin to de bess of my knowledge is a Trini term.  We so anxious to emulate others dat we have to copy how dey spell we own terminology too?  If daz de case..we might as well start heatin homelet, hegg, & happle.

Jes had to ask.  Proceed.

yuh see how allyuh does cause stress..Balawo get ah offer to teach english at ah u.s.university...now dey go pull back de offer

[palos]

I see him give the whiner man in front of smokey & bonty ah dollar.

Totally off topic but I curious.

Since when WINE become WHINE?  I doh get it.  Ah have meh theory dat is because of a jamaican influence whey dem does drop een a "HAYCH" before every vowel.  If dat theory is accurate...is EVERYTING we have to try and copy so?  Winin to de bess of my knowledge is a Trini term.  We so anxious to emulate others dat we have to copy how dey spell we own terminology too?  If daz de case..we might as well start heatin homelet, hegg, & happle.

Jes had to ask.  Proceed.

yuh see how allyuh does cause stress..Balawo get ah offer to teach english at ah u.s.university...now dey go pull back de offer

Ah should tun dong de rhetoric hent?   

Dutty hallyuh good yes! 

[elan]

Guys chill out no one being dotish. Men get what the oman asking for and understand. How it come over and the information that was included in the request must get licks. As Trinbagonians it is our right to hit said statements for 4s and sixes all over the park. Make no mistake though everyone understand and would abide by such a request, cause with all the "fight down" thing, we want to see our players succeed and represent (else there will be no TIA thread).

At the same time though, these fellas have to understand the need to sought out their business if they looking to enter a professional outfit abroad. They cannot be partaking in questionable acivities and then want peopl eto stay quiet. They never watch The Pursuit of Happiness or what? You have to protect your dream. Whose fault is it that they signing illegally with a local club while trying to secure another contract. They have to handle their own situation if they expect help from others.

[kicker]

They cannot be partaking in questionable acivities and then want people to stay quiet.

Very good point...however

Full disclosure and impartiality ought to be the social responsibility/duty of journalism, and such responsibility need not always extend to an opinion-based message board upon which no onus is placed by the social powers.  That's where discretion and the ability to exercise it can and sometimes should be used....as is being requested. 

[Marcos]

I think the level of dotishness communicated by some in this thread alone could possibly render this forum an inappropriate place to gather any credible info...

People are always so sensitive about their right to free speech that it clouds their sensibilities.  A right doesn't negate the accompanying responsibility, and just because you have the right and the freedom to say what you like, it doesn't make everything you say appropriate for the given situation.

The contention that an organization shouldn't put too much stock into what is being said here has nothing to do with what is being asked.  It is what it is (unless you think that Flex & McKenzie are being dishonest).  How organizations should go about getting their info is a different discussion.

All that is being asked for is some discretion in cases where indiscretion could have (and has had in the past) negative ramifications.  I don't see what all the fuss is about.

It's unfortunate that we may be forced to censor our opinions (as ridiculous as they may be) and consequently some of the fun due to the increased popularity/credibility that the forum has enjoyed. To quote Peter Parker, "With more power comes more responsibility." I truly believe that each forum member has the best interest of our nation's football and our nation's footballers at heart and will try to exercise more discretion in the future.

However, let me ask this question. Is it okay for someone to post that he dislikes an aspect of a player's game? Or that he doesn't think that the player is very good? Or one-dimensional? How about if he saw that player in Zen lashing real beers the night before a WCQ?

[Marcos]

At the same time though, these fellas have to understand the need to sought out their business if they looking to enter a professional outfit abroad. They cannot be partaking in questionable acivities and then want peopl eto stay quiet.

Good post. And I think you meant "sort". Trinis love a "-ough-" though. daz d second time today i see dat here.

[Coop's]

This forum is the greatest,i stop posting here for the same reason,posters on here have taken putting down people to another level,the thing is to them is kicks but not realizing what damage they are doing to peoples lives,a lot of what's put on here about these guys are not only about Soccer but about their personal lives just to prove that they know the guy,i commend Flex for taking this action,as i said before these things are not good,nobody can't make anybody change so stop fooling ourselves,people change because they want too,this forum suppose to be friendly to our players,regardless of what we have to be there for them.

[kicker]

I think the level of dotishness communicated by some in this thread alone could possibly render this forum an inappropriate place to gather any credible info...

People are always so sensitive about their right to free speech that it clouds their sensibilities.  A right doesn't negate the accompanying responsibility, and just because you have the right and the freedom to say what you like, it doesn't make everything you say appropriate for the given situation.

The contention that an organization shouldn't put too much stock into what is being said here has nothing to do with what is being asked.  It is what it is (unless you think that Flex & McKenzie are being dishonest).  How organizations should go about getting their info is a different discussion.

All that is being asked for is some discretion in cases where indiscretion could have (and has had in the past) negative ramifications.  I don't see what all the fuss is about.

It's unfortunate that we may be forced to censor our opinions (as ridiculous as they may be) and consequently some of the fun due to the increased popularity/credibility that the forum has enjoyed. To quote Peter Parker, "With more power comes more responsibility." I truly believe that each forum member has the best interest of our nation's football and our nation's footballers at heart and will try to exercise more discretion in the future.

However, let me ask this question. Is it okay for someone to post that he dislikes an aspect of a player's game? Or that he doesn't think that the player is very good? Or one-dimensional? How about if he saw that player in Zen lashing real beers the night before a WCQ?

I think personal opinions on how good a player is is fair game. 

I think what Flex was talking about were sensitive aspects of the player's personal life etc... that the world need not be privy to.

I may be wrong but that's how I interpreted it.

[Marcos]

So cussin' a man for screwing up our chances because he was liming the night before a game is forbidden?

[Quags]

I think when a player on trial is crucial ,thats when the clubs will be reading .e.g rite now we should not diss Hector Sam ,Hyland ,Curtly Ambrose ,,cause them on trials rite now ,I even see something about Evan Wise but I eh even going there.
So is not always just for a week or so ,but especially doh diss him in the tread talking about his trial .

[dumpalewie]

Pure tata! If professional clubs reading a forum and making decisions on signing a player/ How unprofessional is that!

As unprofessional as employers looking at the Facebook pages of prospective employees!!!

[acb]

Pure tata! If professional clubs reading a forum and making decisions on signing a player/ How unprofessional is that!

As unprofessional as employers looking at the Facebook pages of prospective employees!!!

not only prospective, but current employees too.

[Marcos]

Pure tata! If professional clubs reading a forum and making decisions on signing a player/ How unprofessional is that!

As unprofessional as employers looking at the Facebook pages of prospective employees!!!

don't really see anything wrong with it. Applicants are responsible for their own facebook pages. Suppose they have pics saying i hate so-and-so company?
Nothing wrong with background checks.

[#8]

For the people making remarks like 'what kinda unprofessional club uses a fan forum to sign a player etc etc' look at it from another angle....

1.if you have a decision to make between two talented footballers competing for the same position at your club and they both have had successful trial spells but DUE TO THEIR LACK OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS ON THE CLUB/INTERNATIONAL LEVELS..you have to find another way to make a decision on signing one of them,so you decide to use character traits/off the field behaviour as a means of separating both players

2..who better to inform you of a player that has been marketed to you as one of the most talented/popular footballers to grace his country,than the people of that country

3.if you're looking for personal traits/off the field behaviour etc a fan forum..ESPECIALLY this one.. can give you alot of harsh/behind de scenes info that a former employer/players agent/former coach may have doctored or not given you to help the player's image and increase his/her chances of landing a contract

4.Look at the two players mentioned in the thread..you can't ask questions like 'well how come drogba and stern can still get contracts even though so much negative stuff is said about them on the forum' etc etc the answer is simple cause they're PROVEN/ACCOMPLISHED footballers on the club/international stage so their off the field behaviour/character traits don't come into serious consideration when potential signings come about.

As forumites of this site we all can agree that at some point a thread or post by a fellow forumite/moderator has been more informative on a particular topic than that of a 'supposed' reliable source..media etc

So If it was me and I didn't know much about a player from a particular country and I was on the verge of signing him/her.I would be extremely glad if i recieved information that saved me from making a overall bad investment REGARDLESS of where that info came from.

My opinion

[Filho]

 

Forumites..we are being asked to say only 'nice stuff' when a player is on trial. wtf?   None of us would begrudge helping on of our own. MLF has probably noticed that clubs are looking at us as an information source and see us as an easy free marketing tool. How bout we use these guys to our benefit. We'll blame them for railroading a deal or two...but not the full blame or they'll get angry. The combination of guilt and patriotism and they'll help us sell players..and best of all..it's all free.

It would be one thing if she took issue with dishonest or speculative comments...But I don't think that is the case. The club is suspicious Jamal may be involved with JP? what does that mean? Involved how..I don't understand..Don't they know if there is a transfer fee involved? Hardest didn't get a contract because of things said here? When? 1 year ago? 6 months ago? yesterday? Are we really being asked to tone down around trials..or tone down for all MLF players, all the time. Oh..and don't forget to write 'nice stuff'.

I'm sorry to hear clubs are using a fan forum as a way to get 'information' on a player. They are obviously misguided and don't have a clue what the main purpose of a fan forum is. pity. but if the forum is that powerful, then it is a useful tool to help players act like professionals on the field and role models off the field. It shouldn't be our aim, but it's not a bad by-product.

BUT.....I do feel for our players. Because we have a less developed media machine and fewer verifiable sources of information, maybe our comments do take on more significance than those on the average forum. It's not bad to be reminded that we have a responsibility to think about what we write here and it should not only be governed by the forum guidelines, but our good conscience.  Noone here will begrudge helping one of our own...but only as far as not making comments that are dishonest, speculative or inappopriate according to the forum guidelines, and not necessarily what does not shine the best light on the player.

Read the request again..and then ask yourself what next? Are we prepared when every agent representing a T&T player starts asking us to make nice comments only. What happens when a club says they saw something unfavorable written 6 months ago? a year ago? i guess we'll get lists of players saying to tone it dwon until they retire lest we affect contract renewals or transfers to other teams in the future.

this is a fan forum. We are all adults, and we all want to help..so forumites only need a reminder now and then of the importance of their comments..not requests of specific instances when to jump, sit and stay.

[Quags]

What the hell Milf is the only ppl hooking our players up in Europe .Is a flicking dream come true .

[freakazoid]

freakazoid. great right footer, with a left foot rated at 4/5 . jus over 6 feet and is an excellent header of the ball. fit 4 days. brings his own water to trainning and to games.

now i hear what is being said and i am never really critical of much players . but ppl who coming and say men dotish ah having a prob with that. my sister does not use her real name on face book because of  the hr ppl checking up  on those things. but if i find ah man is ah shithong . why shouldnt i say that? thats an opinion.  ppl will always see things differently and thhings said abpout players on this board is very close  to the mark.

so i think the kind hearted lady should address her concerns to the footballers of this country. once yuh have a poor attitude and poor work ethic towards the game clubs will know, because of this forum.


back to matters of importance............freakazoid is a very versatile player he can play anyway on the right side and can even stand between the uprights, if strongly persuaded.belives in 1 man 2 1 woman so the tabloids will never have stories or pictures of him that can  be damaging to a clubs rep

[dinho]

freakazoid. great right footer, with a left foot rated at 4/5 . jus over 6 feet and is an excellent header of the ball. fit 4 days. brings his own water to trainning and to games.

now i hear what is being said and i am never really critical of much players . but ppl who coming and say men dotish ah having a prob with that. my sister does not use her real name on face book because of  the hr ppl checking up  on those things. but if i find ah man is ah shithong . why shouldnt i say that? thats an opinion.  ppl will always see things differently and thhings said abpout players on this board is very close  to the mark.

so i think the kind hearted lady should address her concerns to the footballers of this country. once yuh have a poor attitude and poor work ethic towards the game clubs will know, because of this forum.


back to matters of importance............freakazoid is a very versatile player he can play anyway on the right side and can even stand between the uprights, if strongly persuaded.belives in 1 man 2 1 woman so the tabloids will never have stories or pictures of him that can  be damaging to a clubs rep

nice try, but your career done gone thru after i sully yuh name in the fantasy cup thread last year.. no morals, so no coming back for you.. 

[st john strikers]

Some employers now use MySpace and Facebook to help in their hiring process. I can see where a player may or may not be offered a contract based on the views of prior playing experience.

Just a thought. 

GO WARRIORS.

[freakazoid]

freakazoid. great right footer, with a left foot rated at 4/5 . jus over 6 feet and is an excellent header of the ball. fit 4 days. brings his own water to trainning and to games.

now i hear what is being said and i am never really critical of much players . but ppl who coming and say men dotish ah having a prob with that. my sister does not use her real name on face book because of  the hr ppl checking up  on those things. but if i find ah man is ah shithong . why shouldnt i say that? thats an opinion.  ppl will always see things differently and thhings said abpout players on this board is very close  to the mark.

so i think the kind hearted lady should address her concerns to the footballers of this country. once yuh have a poor attitude and poor work ethic towards the game clubs will know, because of this forum.


back to matters of importance............freakazoid is a very versatile player he can play anyway on the right side and can even stand between the uprights, if strongly persuaded.belives in 1 man 2 1 woman so the tabloids will never have stories or pictures of him that can  be damaging to a clubs rep

nice try, but your career done gone thru after i sully yuh name in the fantasy cup thread last year.. no morals, so no coming back for you.. 

no morals? u feel this is the games we use to play forum o wat. .

excellent fantasy manager maybe able to do some scouting for the  club. ( omar can testify as to how good a scout i am, ah beat the man about 2 years ago and he car forget that licks yes)

[davidephraim]

I really think some posters here should listen more carefully to what Flex has to say.

The reality of the situation is that many of our T&T players are not well known internationally and any information that clubs glean on these players (even the bits and pieces on forums such as these) is useful to a club interested in their services. The level of professionalism can be questioned but don't doubt that it happens - maybe not to the extent Ms. Mackenzie is arguing though.

Many companies I know use Facebook to look up potential job candidates and make judgments based on their Facebook pages, walls and pictures. You'd be surprised at how many seemingly 'professional' companies have people in HR do this. Similarly, it can be conceived that clubs use forums in a similar manner. After all, I know some forumites who visit other club forums (Sunderland etc.) to get an idea how our players are viewed by the club's fans.

Of course many would disagree, laugh it off or simply not care. I'm not saying criticism of players isn't welcome but I'd think carefully before posting rumors, speculations and ole talk at a time when a player is on trial with a club.

This is funny but understandable. Question... wouldn't de same clubs see this post also and feel like de info purported on our site is phony? At any rate to add a little validity to de story.... For anyone who have recently applied for a job in de corporate world..... Managers and employers do ask for a face book entry to check you out so to speak so to say that clubs reading up on players is foolish is prehistoric. Its the new world. However to say that a club would accept or dismiss a person/player on de merits that we transmit is dumb.

The Facebook analogy is flawed... many recruiters will indeed run a search of 'social networking' sites to see if candidates have posted any questionable content to their profiles.  For some, 'questionable content' aside, the mere fact that a candidate has a social networking profile is to them proof positive of a lack of discretion on the part of said candidate, and a strike against their candidacy.

That is vastly different from this present situation.  Here you don't have players posting "questionable content" or otherwised displaying any lack of discretion... or anything else that may serve as a primary source for guiding the judgment of a player's skill or character.  Put another way, there is nothing done here by the players themselves that can be used as a strike against them, unlike the Facebook job applicant.  What happens on discussion forums such as this is that you have a bunch of overly eager and often times overly emotional posters who anonymously post speculative, disparaging, and often unfounded information about players.  As I said earlier... any talent representative worth their salt should be able to dispel these with accurate information... it's really not that difficult to find more accurate sources.  

That said... I am not entirely unsympathetic to Ms. Mackenzie's position.  Most of the talent on her client roster is marginal, these guys are lucky that people are even looking at them (being completely objective), so they start out the recruitment process with strikes already against them.  To make it worse, they are competing with god knows however many other similarly situated players out there (other marginal talents), so clubs might be less inclined to take the time to sift thru the negative chatter when they know they can cut their losses early and just move on to the next prospect.

While I disagree on principle with the request, and with the overall premise on which it was made... I also fully agree that people should think twice before lambasting some of these players.  I personally make it a point not to be overly critical of players, after all, there is a reason why I do what I do and they're doing what they do.  All that aside, these fellas are just trying to make a living, in the least we should be understanding of that.

Bake and shark, this may be so in the US and Canada but  in Asia & parts of Europe, to not have a facebook account for your employer to look at is almost a certainty that you wont even be considered for the position. your seen as a social dinosaur and social misfits are seen as unstable, non team players and the most likely to blow up de dam building de day yuh get vex.


So you owe me a bake and Shark.

P.S. Note to self....  Get a facebook account pronto!

[WestCoast]

MacKenzie told me she got Jemmott to turn a new leaf and the forum was PART of the problem.... the club's press will research the player (as we do here) and write news on them. I see many clubs using stuff on this site that I wrote myself. The internet is a strong tool.... it saves you time and money...

if this forum was PART of the problem then the blame hadda rest solely at the feet of T.I.

Is he who singlehandedly adopt Hardest and turn him into a larger than life cult hero, trying to ram the fellah down the forum throat as the second coming of Pele. Is he who make the man such an easy target and such ah forum phenomenon that as soon as a thread on Hardest pop up, it guaranteed at least two pages. Doh blame de forum. I sure he is aware of the damage done too given his conspicuous absence.
my 2 cents.

ya kno...out of idleness
one day, back in his heyday, I counted 12 threads just on the first page alone.......

[Socafan]

freakazoid. great right footer, with a left foot rated at 4/5 . jus over 6 feet and is an excellent header of the ball. fit 4 days. brings his own water to trainning and to games.

now i hear what is being said and i am never really critical of much players . but ppl who coming and say men dotish ah having a prob with that. my sister does not use her real name on face book because of  the hr ppl checking up  on those things. but if i find ah man is ah shithong . why shouldnt i say that? thats an opinion.  ppl will always see things differently and thhings said abpout players on this board is very close  to the mark.

so i think the kind hearted lady should address her concerns to the footballers of this country. once yuh have a poor attitude and poor work ethic towards the game clubs will know, because of this forum.[/u]

back to matters of importance............freakazoid is a very versatile player he can play anyway on the right side and can even stand between the uprights, if strongly persuaded.belives in 1 man 2 1 woman so the tabloids will never have stories or pictures of him that can  be damaging to a clubs rep

Exactly

[weary1969]

If u want to learn bout Hardest check d 1001 club he play 4. Anyother player check dey previous coaches. Doh come here this is a cyber rum shop where most of d time peeps drunk. As 4 d facebook analogy if u dotish enough 2 post someting 2 prevent u from gettin a wuk u should not get d wuk.

[College]

Well yes ..."everybody peepin!!"