March 28, 2024, 04:10:12 AM

Author Topic: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread  (Read 3570 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Tallman

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 25250
    • View Profile
Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« on: March 19, 2019, 08:18:39 PM »
Launch of Police Commissioner's Cup Football Tournament 2019
TTPS Corporate Communications Unit


Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith has officially launched the Commissioner's Cup Football Tournament on Tuesday 19th March, 2019, at the Police Administration Building, Port of Spain.

This initiative is a collaborative effort of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) through its Community Policing Unit, the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association and the Football Factory Foundation. The tournament which kicks off in July 2019, is designed to incorporate sport as an essential crime fighting tool.

Commissioner Griffith said, "Sports especially football, can serve as a catalyst for creating s stronger and closer communities and create a pool of talent for future TTPS football teams and by extension the nation." Commissioner Griffith says this initiative will assist in minimizing nefarious activities within communities, encourage self-development while encouraging greater discipline among players and fostering camaraderie among teams.

Former national player who has also played in the English Premier League, Kenwyne Jones said he was honored to be a part of such a timely initiative said "football clubs are pillars in communities and play an integral part in motivating youth to becoming better players, while helping to build their character to deal with the adversities they face at home."

The Commissioner's Cup will play an integral role in fostering national development given that players attached to 46 youth clubs across the country will participate in 75 matches which will culminate in one major final.

Among the top prizes is the opportunity to receive football scholarships in the UK through the Football Factory and the MVP of the finals will be afforded the opportunity to travel with the TTFA to an international friendly match abroad.
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

Offline Tallman

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 25250
    • View Profile
Fenwick: Youths key to football success
« Reply #1 on: July 01, 2019, 01:02:46 PM »
Fenwick: Youths key to football success
By Clint Chan Tack (T&T Newsday)


FOOTBALL Factory technical director Terry Fenwick yesterday said emphasis must be placed on youth development if T&T is going to compete successfully at international football tournaments such as the Concacaf Gold Cup.

Fenwick, a former England defender who played for clubs such as Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace, underscored this point at the launch of the Commissioner’s Cup at the Mickey Trotman Ground, Pinto Road, Arima.

Fenwick told reporters the Football Factory is hoping to unearth some of the great football talent in T&T. “T&T has got some fabulous talent on the ground. Some never get to the forefront because they are missed.” As the tournament takes place from July to August, Fenwick said the Football Factory will be out there “eyes peeled.” He added “ Already we are seeing some great talent out there.” On T&T’s exit from this year’s Concacaf Gold Cup in the United States, Fenwick said the development of local football has “got to start at the grassroots”. He explained, “ We got to have structure and we’ve got to have top coaches at every position so when the kids come to these competitions, we compete.”

Fenwick added, “At the moment what we’re seeing is national sides which are not competing. They’re just turning up. That’s got to change.”

He did not comment on the debate about whether national coach Dennis Lawrence or T&T Football Association (TTFA) president David John-Williams were to blame for what happened at the Gold Cup..

He reiterated, “More importantly, what we’re looking at is the kids of T&T.” After saying football’s worldwide impact cannot be ignored, Fenwick said, “We can’t allow our administration and coaches to negatively impact the possibilities for these kids.” Fenwick previously said the TTFA should be held to account for what happened at the Gold Cup. He also said Lawrence has had a difficult time as coach and the team seemed to be under pressure all the time.

Fenwick was optimistic the Cup would become an annual event and an opportunity for young people to get football scholarships or play for T&T. He agreed with Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith that the Cup was a game changer in communities in T&T.

Griffith observed that countries such as Panama and Venezuela have invested in the development of football at youth level. He said T&T needed to follow that model if it is to compete successfully at the international level. Griffith said the Cup has been sanctioned by the TTFA and former national player Kenwyne Jones is among the people involved in promoting it.
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

Offline Tallman

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 25250
    • View Profile
Pinto, Oropoune register huge wins
« Reply #2 on: July 01, 2019, 01:04:52 PM »
Pinto, Oropoune register huge wins
By Joel Bailey (T&T Newsday)


PINTO and Oropoune Police Youth Clubs registered huge wins yesterday, as the inaugural Commissioner’s Cup kicked off.

In a double-header at the Mickey Trotman Recreation Ground, Pinto Road, Arima, Pinto trounced Brazil/San Raphael Police Youth Club 9-1 while Oropoune hammered Carapo Youth Club 6-0.

Jamal Williams was the star of the show for Pinto with a beaver-trick, with Nikosi Hernandez notching a hat-trick.

Stephen De Verteuil got the other items for Pinto.

In the earlier fixture, Player of the Match Kaylon Williams netted twice for Oropoune, while Kevin Greenidge Jr, Tyrese Bernard, Micah Lopez and Khymani Neptune chipped in with one apiece.

The Commissioner’s Cup is an Under-17 age group football tournament which will take place during this July-August school vacation. It involves 46 police youth clubs from T&T.
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

Offline Deeks

  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18631
    • View Profile
Re: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #3 on: July 01, 2019, 03:11:30 PM »
Good Competition! Any for the girls?

Offline Anbrat

  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 688
    • View Profile
Re: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #4 on: July 09, 2019, 09:28:18 PM »
Good Competition! Any for the girls?
Good call, Deeks!

Offline Deeks

  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18631
    • View Profile
Re: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #5 on: July 10, 2019, 10:34:35 AM »
Good Competition! Any for the girls?
Good call, Deeks!

See why I have to agree with Megan Rapinoe. The women's game is always an after thought or mostly forgotten.

Offline Flex

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18062
  • A Trini 4 Real.
    • View Profile
    • Soca Warriors Online
Re: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #6 on: July 11, 2019, 12:35:54 AM »
Oropune on winning streak at Commisioner’s Cup
By Valdeen Shears (Newsday).


RED ribbons, a goal in the first minute of play and a hat-rick marked Sunday’s second leg of matches in the recently launched Commissioner’s Cup Football tournament.

During the inaugural match,of the Cup,on June 30, players from the Pinto and Oropune Police Youth Club went home victorious, beating opposing teams, Brazil/San Raphael and Carapo, respectively.

As a result, on Sunday, the two teams squared off at Squadron Grounds, Trincity, in a match which ended with Oropune beating Pinto 6-4.

Oropune’s players sported red ribbons on their wrist, in solidarity against rising crime in their community.

Two murders, just one month apart had rocked the HDC housing scheme and resulted in several headlines outlining the social ills being faced there.

Despite this, the young men were able to stay focused and win for their community.

Kaylon Williams got things started when he volleyed a ball past Pinto’s goal-keeper, Samuel Boodoosingh, during the first minute of the match.

Williams, delivered a hat-trick, scoring three of the team’s winning goals.

His teammate, Josiah Small, quickly followed up with Oropune’s second goal.

Pinto’s players, Jamal Williams and Josiah Hill, were not to be outdone and scored one goal a piece. Their teammate, Anton Phillip netted two more goals against Oropune’s goalie, Makhaya Bob-Simple.

Two of Pinto’s goals were penalty shots.

Accompanied by an energetic rhythm section, a small group of Oropune’s supporters chanted a song of victory, in anticipation of winning.

However, by the middle of the second half, Pinto showed them why they had been declared winners at their first match, bringing the score up, 5-4.

Pinto’s supporters, took it in good stride, with their players giving their all on the field and their dancers, in matching red and white, also encouraging them in song.

While Williams scored a hat-trick,a yellow card saw him ousted from the title of Player of the Match by team captain, Asa Carimbocas.

The Commissioner’s Cup is an Under-17 football tournament, which will take place during this July-August school vacation. It involves 46 police youth clubs from TT.

Pinto’s games co-ordinator, WPC Kathy Hernandez, said she could not have been more proud of her players, as they met Oropune play for play.

Cpl Kevin Greenidge, Oropune’s club leader, on the rising crime situation in their community, said,”We, those that want to see the youths of today, be productive, positive role models for the next generation and all-round adults of the future, do not intend to let crime or whatever ills in our community, stop us from achieving what we set out to do.”

He urged youths across the nation to join clubs in their respective communities and “take full advantage of the opportunities offered”.

Greenidge’s words pre-empted another victory for the Oropune youths, as they retained their title of March Pass champs at the Biannual Northern Division Commissioner’s Police Youth Club Games, yesterday at Constantine Park, Macoya.

Flagged by their King,( Kevin Greenidge Jr), in khaki attire, reminiscent of a senior police officer and their Queen (Tajnique Horsford), in army green and gold scissors-tail military jacket and matching khaki pants, Oropune earned the nod of the judges.

Horsford was also crowned third place queen for her efforts.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Flex

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18062
  • A Trini 4 Real.
    • View Profile
    • Soca Warriors Online
Re: Minor League Thread.
« Reply #7 on: July 27, 2020, 03:54:56 AM »
‘Answer me and I’ll stop Commissioner’s Cup!’ Griffith makes public appeal as CMO skips meeting.
By Lasana Liburd (Wired868).


Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith said he is waiting on answers to points raised in his press statement this evening before deciding on the fate of the 2020 Commissioner’s Cup.

The Commissioner’s Cup football tournament caters to over 2,000 children nationwide who are divided into under-14, under-16 and under-18 categories and was initially due to kick off in early August.

However, the competition was thrown into doubt after repeated advisories by Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram and Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh that all children’s activities should be delayed until September, due to concerns about Covid-19 infections.

“I am still waiting for clarification because the government is telling me I should proceed but the CMO is hinting that I shouldn’t,” Griffith told Wired868. “The attorney general and the minister of national security have given me a thumbs up to continue but the CMO is saying otherwise. So I have raised a couple questions in my press release and I am waiting to get an answer.”

Incidentally, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) was visited by a representative from the CMO’s office today. Dr Parasram did not attend the meeting and, this morning, Deyalsingh made it clear that Griffith’s comments about him and his CMO had not gone unnoticed.

“All the advice we have given about children, which has not gone down well in some quarters,” said Deyalsingh. “[…] Both the CMO and I have been under the gun about the measures we are taking to protect children…”

Despite his continuing questions on the issue of sport competitions for minors, Griffith also chose not to attend the meeting with the CMO’s representative. He declined to answer whether he snubbed talks because he was informed that Dr Parasram would not be there.

Griffith did say that the CMO’s representative stuck the line of the Ministry of Health’s bigwigs, which was: ‘it is not against the law but we do not advise it’.

The commissioner of police still does not view that as a satisfactory answer. He pointed to fact that some school and youth teams stopped training because of the CMO’s advice while some continued on the grounds that the government’s public health ordinance made it okay to do so.

“They are confusing the life out of everyone,” he said.

So will the Commissioner’s Cup be stopped?

Griffith said he has no problem calling off the tournament—but first he wants some clarification.

“We will adhere to the medical health guidance, don’t get me wrong,” said Griffith. “But my point is there are mixed messages. You cannot say it is improper for an organised tournament but not for hundreds of children to go to Maracas Bay, or to a waterpark, or to sweat at the Queen’s Park Savannah or to a movie within a closed environment. That makes no sense.

“How is an organised football game a higher risk factor than hundreds of children at Maracas Bay?”

RELATED NEWS

CMO, Griffith to meet on Commissioner’s Cup, children’s sport remains touchy topic.
By Lasana Liburd (Wired868).


Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith and Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram confirmed that representatives from both organisations will meet this week to discuss children’s sports over the July/August period.

At present, there are no Covid-19 health regulations that forbid sport at any age group and Griffith is keen to hold the Commissioner’s Cup next month—a football tournament that features over 2,000 children competing in the Under-14, Under-16 and Under-18 categories.

However, Dr Parasram has repeatedly advised against any children’s activities before September. This morning, the CMO repeated his concerns, in the wake of a suspected case of local spread of the virus.

“There is no regulation as it relates to sporting activities,” said Dr Parasram, “however as we have said before, the medical advice remains—and more-so with this last case we have gotten with no link to importation.

“There remains a concern for children and we are asking parents to do all that is necessary to protect your children at this time and take personal responsibility for their wellbeing. So we are asking that all child related actives be held until September, aside from the SEA and other examinations that are taking place.”

Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh addressed the issue of team sport later but specified that he was referring to adult sport.

“Team sports can go on—you can play your cricket, you can play your football, you can play your volleyball—but just no crowds or audiences,” said Deyalsingh, who advised teams to limit the numbers of ball boys and support staff to 25. “It is not that adult sports can’t be played. They can be played; but no big crowds.”

It would suggest that senior domestic football competition, the Ascension Tournament, scheduled to kick off on 14 August, should be fine to proceed. But the Commissioner’s Cup may not have the blessings of the CMO.

However, Griffith hopes to convince the CMO to soften his stance before the end of the week—although Dr Parasram’s concerns do not carry any legal force.

Griffith repeated his own view that organised sport remains than one of the healthiest things the country’s young men and women can do over the July/August holiday period.

“[The Commissioner’s Cup] will be one of the safest places for young people to be in comparison to being in a cinema or waterpark,” Griffith told Wired868. “I have spoken to the ministers of health and national security and there is absolutely nothing they have stated that says it is not to take place.

“The reason why I have been so vocal on this is because sport plays an integral part to keep young children away from crime and to keep them healthy.”

Griffith pointed to policies that will be in place for the Commissioner’s Cup such as the banning of spectators, huddling and snacks while there will be temperature checks for players and teams must leave match venues immediately after their games.

If the Commissioner’s Cup gets the green light from the CMO, it is likely to set a precedent for other youth sporting activities which can put similar safeguards in place.

CoP to Deyalsingh: ‘Include me in covid19 talks'
By Narissa Fraser (Newsday).


COMMISSIONER of Police Gary Griffith says he has been trying to contact Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh for days, describing some of the ministry's actions as “hypocrisy.”

He was speaking at a media briefing on Monday morning.

He said the police are there to enforce laws, so he should at least be included "at the forefront" of discussions surrounding the covid19 pandemic.

Recently, Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram said team sports involving children should not be allowed.

But Griffith had responded that children were congregating for other things, such as beach visits. He said some people seemed to have misunderstood the point he was trying to make.

“If it is you just give us a briefing to say, ‘Do not have a sporting tournament,’ but you could allow persons to play 20-a-side small goal in an enclosed environment in Nelson Mandela Park and nothing is done – that is not democracy, that is hypocrisy.”

In a release last Wedensday, the CoP criticised the CMO's advice that youth sports should be postponed until school restarts in September. Griffith said young people would be frustrated after being shut up at home under lockdown, and said there was no law against their playing sports once the maximum numbers permitted under the Public Health Ordiannce were observed.

Griffith added on Monday,, “I heard the Minister of Health speak today and he said, ‘Communication is the key.’

"It’s very interesting the Minister of Health stated this, because a few days now I’ve asked him to contact me and he said he is busy.

"For several days I’ve asked to meet the Chief Medical Officer – he has refused to meet with the Commissioner of Police…

However, he said, "Rather than persons trying to make things personal, I would ask the Minister of Health to take his own advice and use communication as a key to ensure whatever (steps) they recommend, the police service can adhere to them and assist.”

« Last Edit: July 27, 2020, 12:54:53 PM by Flex »
The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Flex

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18062
  • A Trini 4 Real.
    • View Profile
    • Soca Warriors Online
Re: Police Commisioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #8 on: July 28, 2020, 03:34:09 AM »
Griffith calls off Commissioner's Cup.
By Jelani Beckles (Newsday).


COMMISSIONER of Police Gary Griffith said that the second annual Commissioner’s Cup, carded to start in August, will not be played because of the suggestion by Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Roshan Parasram and Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh to not play youth sports because of covid19.

Griffith, speaking at a media briefing on Monday, said, “The TT Police Service we are fully aware of the importance of safety and security of this country. We have been the frontline organisation to ensure that the covid pandemic remains in such a way that will not affect the health of individuals and the safety of the country, so we automatically would take the recommendation by the CMO and the Minister of Health.”

Griffith said the Commissioner’s Cup is off. “So if the CMO has a concern as it pertains to a football tournament we will adhere to it…if there is a concern about the Commissioner’s Cup, which is something that was to be used as a catalyst towards getting young persons to remain healthy, to stay away from crime and to utilise their energies in the right manner, but there is a concern by the CMO then obviously we will not have the Commissioner’s Cup.”

Griffith said he is still concerned why people are allowed to gather at water parks and people are permitted to take part in casual sporting activities.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline asylumseeker

  • Moderator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18073
    • View Profile
Re: Re: Police Commisioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #9 on: July 29, 2020, 02:07:25 PM »
So the bhaji boil down.

Offline Deeks

  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18631
    • View Profile
Re: Re: Police Commisioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #10 on: July 29, 2020, 03:23:18 PM »
Police in Riverside got infected. So I guess that may have been a turning point.

Offline Flex

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18062
  • A Trini 4 Real.
    • View Profile
    • Soca Warriors Online
Re: Re: Police Commisioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #11 on: July 31, 2020, 01:23:37 PM »
Griffith blanks approval to host Commissioner’s Cup
By Jelani Beckles (Newsday).


THE TT Police Service (TTPS) corporate communications unit was granted permission to have the Commissioner’s Cup, but the TTPS said the guidelines given to host the tournament is not practical and have officially decided to “cancel/postpone” the tournament for 2020.

Commissioner of Police (CoP) Gary Griffith has been asking the Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh and the Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram for clarity as to why casual sporting activities are being allowed, but not an organised sporting tournament.

The Commissioner’s Cup is an Under-18 football tournament that was scheduled to start in August.

On Monday, at a media briefing Griffith said that the Commissioner’s Cup is off.

However, a TTPS media release on Thursday said the TTPS was given permission to host the tournament.

“Today the TTPS received correspondence from the Ministry of Health's state counsel one, indicating that the Commissioner’s Cup can indeed be allowed to proceed, but that it must do so with a total of only 25 persons per game. We are at a loss to understand how this is even possible. Each team has 11 players and a coach, plus there are also referees, linesmen, and support staff. Is the correspondence suggesting we have no coaches, substitutes, and/or no medical/first aid personnel at games?”

Griffith said in order to have 25 people at a match only two teams of 11 with a referee and two linesmen can be allowed at the venue.

Griffith, as he said on Monday, reiterated that he finds it strange that young people are being allowed to participate in other activities.

“I continue to find it strange that the Minister of Health continues daily to state that young persons playing organised team sports is not recommended, (young people being described as those Under-18) even going as far as suggesting that parents play football with their kids in their backyard, yet he says nothing about the same young persons in water parks, being on a beach, or being in a movie theatre which is enclosed. In each of those situations, young people can number in the hundreds in a relatively confined space.”

Griffith questions why adults are allowed to play sports and said the impending Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) T20 tournament will violate the guidelines.

“(The Health Minister) is also apparently okay with persons Over-18 playing an organised sport. However for this to happen the interpretation of the Ministry of Health’s state counsel one clearly cannot be applied since the numbers for such a competition will surely exceed 25 in total. Even more interestingly, the proposed Government-sanctioned CPL tournament will be in violation of the said ordinance based on the interpretation of the Ministry of Health.”

The release confirmed that the Commissioner’s Cup is off. “In this regard, the CoP wishes to state that based on the correspondence sent to the Office of Commissioner (on Thursday), that rather than have a tournament with no coaches, no medics, no trainers, no security, and no substitutes, and rather than risk injury to players who cannot be substituted even if they were to, unfortunately, get injured, I shall officially cancel/postpone the Commissioner’s Cup. This I’m sure will please the Health Ministry as it has clearly been their objective to so influence me all along.”

Griffith said the Commissioner’s Cup is an opportunity for youngsters to attain scholarships to travel to England or ply their trade in the leagues in T&T.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline ABTrini

  • Sr. Warrior
  • ****
  • Posts: 422
    • View Profile
Re: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #12 on: August 01, 2020, 09:53:27 PM »
All dis bacchanal so 4cup

Offline Flex

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18062
  • A Trini 4 Real.
    • View Profile
    • Soca Warriors Online
Re: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #13 on: October 02, 2020, 03:07:25 AM »
CoP gets 300 balls
By Jensen La Vende (Newsday).


POLICE COMMISSIONER Gary Griffith was given 300 footballs on Thursday by former president of the Supermarkets Association Baliram Maharaj.

Maharaj gave Griffith the balls at the weekly police media briefing at Sackville Street, Port of Spain.

Maharaj said it was an honour and pleasure to donate to the Commissioner’s Cup as he congratulated Griffith on his social work.

“I recall the commissioner starting a competition to get the youths involved in football. I decided to speak to him and offer him the 300 balls for that project. I told him if we get 300 balls to 300 teams, we will have 3,000 youths that will not get involved in any life of crime.”

The Commissioner’s Cup is an Under-18 football tournament that was scheduled to start in August. In July it was postponed owing to the guidelines set out for outdoor activities in battling the covid19 pandemic. The guidelines stipulated only 25 people were allowed per game.

Maharaj called on the nation to pray that the impasse between FIFA and the TT Football Association (TTFA) is soon ended.

Last week FIFA suspended TTFA which meant T&T is excluded from all FIFA-sanctioned tournaments. The length of the suspension was not given.

T&T was preparing to take part in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers and the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup.

The announcement by FIFA came the day after the United TTFA, led by William Wallace, decided to withdraw its court matter against FIFA. After the suspension, TTFA withdrew its withdrawal and the matter is now before the courts.

Maharaj added that as someone who played football 60 years ago, he is concerned how FIFA’s suspension will help football, especially those who intend to represent T&T.

He said it will be difficult to get FIFA to change the suspension and hopes the court matter will end soon.

“Let us all pray for that matter to be settled and nation to return to normalcy.

"Lastly, I want all of T&T to support this youth event and to ensure football continues alive and kicking.”

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Tallman

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 25250
    • View Profile
Griffith wants Commissioner’s Cup to unearth T&T’s hidden talent
« Reply #14 on: November 19, 2020, 01:09:47 PM »
Griffith wants Commissioner’s Cup to unearth T&T’s hidden talent
By Nigel Simon (T&T Guardian)


T&T Police Service Commissioner, Gary Griffith is hoping that the 2021 Commissioner’s Cup, once given the ‘green light’ to get going in March/April will be able to unearth hidden talents in T&T.

The CoP was speaking at the launch held at the T&T Police Service Administration Building, Second Floor, Port-of-Spain, yesterday.

Among the main persons in attendance were national men’s senior team coach Terry Fenwick, Susan Worrell, events manager of National Lotteries Control Board (NLCB), and Liam Donnelly, general manager, Digicel Business,  

Looking towards the staging of the next edition of the Commissioner’s Cup an upbeat Griffith said, “Let us use this as an opportunity to find hidden talent and opportunity to dream and opportunity to build relationships and just make this place a better country.”  

Following a successful inaugural staging in 2019, this year’s second edition of the competition was carded for August 13-24 but was eventually cancelled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Admitting that sports was, by and large, his first love and not law enforcement, Griffith said he has been involved in sports for decades from all levels up to the level of national teams and he has seen what sport can do for a young person, family and country.

Noting that during the 2006 World Cup, the lowest detection of crime was recorded in T&T during the two weeks after the team’s qualification Griffith added, “Sport can do that, you can very well dream, you can believe and football obviously is the main aspect and element that young men and women are involved in.

“Not everyone can be a professional footballer, not everyone can play in a World Cup Final and it’s about less than one per cent of everyone who plays football will do so at the highest level and make it as their living.

"But let's look at football not just as young men and women trying to become professional footballers as a career, but the character traits you get from sport, especially football, it makes you not just a better footballer but a better man and woman in the society.

"Sport brings character traits such as leadership, tactics, teamwork, punctuality, not giving up, and these are the character traits we want of our young people in our society.

"And through the Commissioner’s Cup, we can work in projected areas where they have never had that opportunity and now they can say, I have a chance to be part of something and I can build and develop my character through sport.

"When I look at the Commissioner’s Cup the last time it was held, unfortunately, we had to cancel it this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it wasn’t just the individual development, the community developed, you started seeing the village working and getting closer and then the communities also became closer with other communities as the gaps were bridging.

"That’s what we are looking for in this Commissioners Cup to build relationships, strengthen character and make young men and women better persons and unfortunately, there are people who try to question this and not see the value with the Police Service getting involved in something like this.

"This kind of things happens worldwide and this Police Service once I am Commissioner of Public will do all that is possible to try and help young men and women in different places, try to give them that opportunity just to dream because what we are seeing in T&T football is unless you are playing Secondary Schools football or Pro League football, you will not be given that opportunity and there is so much hidden talent out there, it is unbelievable!”

"This is what the Commissioner’s Cup is about, it allows a person who may not be in one of the top 15 schools that play in the Championship Division in Colleges League or in the eight clubs in the Pro League to be seen by the media, it gives the young persons an opportunity to go out there and be able to dream and believe."

Griffith also lauded national coach, former England international Terry Fenwick, who through his Football Factory Academy will be a key partner in the staging of the Commissioner’s Cup.

“He has played at the highest level at the FIFA World Cup, FA Cups and clubs and T&T, we are very fortunate to have an individual like this and instead of us trying to circle the wagons, what we do in this country is to try and cause hate, bitterness, divide and destroy because we are not part of it.

“But when it comes to sport and I am heavily involved in several different sports organisations just to make a difference, so let us try to build, and work together and try to respect the persons in authority and thankfully through the support of Fenwick, Worrell and Donnelly, they have played a very big part towards the success, so thank you Digicel and NLCB for providing the support that we need.

"This is not just about dollars and sense, the support that you all are providing is going to give us so much opportunity to work and go much deeper into areas that we did not go last time around, and just maybe we will be able to find one or two future national players."

Donnelly added that from a Digicel perspective they are all very excited and very proud to get involved in such a great initiative for T&T.

He said," As a global company, we always try to work within the country we operate to try and drive community sports and work with the associations such as the T&T Police Service and we firmly believe that this a stepping stone towards helping communities and change the evident perspective of young children who will be exposed to these entities, and we also see this as an opportunity to use technology from the digital world to try and expose and get more T&T footballers on a much more global scale.

“We are also happy to work with Football Factory and we support and appreciative of the work they have done over the years to generate this type of social dynamic and improve the football ability within this country."

Football Factory Foundation founder Fenwick, who left a national team training session early to attend the launch, said he was excited to be talking about actually getting onto the football field with youths, and not just having Zoom sessions as has been the norm for the past eight months or so due to the COVID-19.

“Due to the COVID-19 virus, we have gone almost a whole year doing absolutely nothing working from home, try to get through a few issues behind the scenes with football.

"But the kids we forget, kids like Erin Steeple (MVP of 2019 Commissioner's Cup) that are not playing football on the fields any more, are not going to schools anymore, there is no leagues, there is no teams that are playing, no Pro League, Schools Leagues, it just haven’t happened, so we tend to forget that everybody is looking at the economy and looking at how things are going in business with people losing their jobs but we tend to forget there are kids out there who also have lives and ambitions.

"These kids have great ability and yes they must be able to dream about a future in football. With their skill sets they want to get out and prove themselves but due the COVID-19 virus has made it difficult and ourselves with the national team trying to bring players together it has been difficult because we have stopped-start and we have had our political issues in the background, and which kind of now have been resolved, but again it's about kids and their communities and how we can help them and fast track and give them hope and ambition to move forward with their chosen life sport and career move.

“What I would love to say is that the Commissioner’s Cup theme ‘Shoot Goals and Not Guns” is a wonderful saying that is moving youngsters away from potential gang and scary situations into sports, recognising not everyone is academically-inclined as some people have other skill-sets in life and they need to use them going forward.”

Fenwick also praised Donnelly for the phrasing “Together is Better” saying, "Of course it is because we have to work together and we have to try and make it happen together."

Noting that January 2021 will make it 21 years of living in T&T, Fenwick said when he came here January 4, 2000, within a week of arriving he was told what crabs in a barrel meant.

“I never took it on and just got on with things and we have got to start recognising that if it’s not for me, it’s not for anybody and start working together and start getting into the communities and change the old guard and change the way people's perception has been in the past as these youngsters need something brand new and positive.

“That sometimes mean rubbing some people the wrong way trying to force the issue to get results rather than just discussions that doesn’t go anywhere.”

Fenwick stated that Football Factory will provide all the technical support and they are already networking with people overseas to make the competition work as far as scholarships are concerned and they are also working on making an unbelievable win-win situation for not just the kids, players and community in having an overseas tour as a prize for the winning teams.
The Conquering Lion of Judah shall break every chain.

Offline Flex

  • Administrator
  • Hero Warrior
  • *****
  • Posts: 18062
  • A Trini 4 Real.
    • View Profile
    • Soca Warriors Online
Re: Police Commissioner's Cup Thread
« Reply #15 on: August 22, 2021, 01:50:10 PM »
The CoP and the Commissioner’s Cup Pt 2: Griffith III’s scholarship, Fenwick’s broken promises, and heartbroken communities
By Lasana Liburd (Wired868).


“The concept of sport is going to play a very big part towards a young person moving away from a life of crime,” Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith told a CNC3 sport reporter, at the opening of the inaugural Commissioner’s Cup at the Mickey Trotman Recreation Ground in Pinto on 30 June 2019.

At Griffith’s side, visible to the television camera, was controversial English football coach Terry Fenwick.

Fenwick, a former England World Cup player, once served two months in prison for a drunk driving conviction in Leicester. In Trinidad and Tobago, despite facing more serious allegations over his 20-year stay, the Englishman instead found himself on the payroll of the local police and chummy with the twin island republic’s top cop.

When, in November 2019, local business magnate Junior Sammy accused United TTFA presidential candidate William Wallace of fraudulently using his signature during a marketing presentation—based on a document provided by Fenwick—Griffith spoke to both parties, with the contractor agreeing to accept an apology, which was offered by Wallace.

Similarly, after Fenwick had a public altercation with Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) press officer Shaun Fuentes, Griffith was again part of a meeting with the normalisation committee, which resolved the issue in the Englishman’s favour.

Griffith, who might not be the first in the room to identify irony, assured CNC3 that the Commissioner’s Cup would be nothing like the Hoops of Life or LifeSport programmes or ‘any [programme] where the funds will not be actually distributed where it matters most’.

“This is where it matters, straight down into the rank and file of the young persons,” said Griffith, pointing to teenagers playing on the football ground. “All that we have in expenses here [is for] providing uniforms for the young men and the other players, administrative costs, footballs, training…”

It is difficult to see how Griffith could have thought he was speaking the truth. For weeks, members of the organising committee as well as Police Youth Club members complained about a lack of equipment for their respective teams.

On 4 June 2019, the Commissioner’s Cup committee enquired—as a matter of urgency—about the uniforms and balls that Fenwick promised to provide from his ‘international network’ at a ‘reasonable cost’.

Fenwick, according to minutes from the meeting, again vowed to deliver the goods before the tournament kicked off.

“No further communication was ever received from Mr Fenwick, nor any of his associates in this regard,” stated a subsequent report, ostensibly submitted by acting Inspector Keith Phillips.

The officers did not know at the time that Fenwick had invoiced the TTPS for TT$995,000, through the Football Factory Foundation (FFF), since 27 May 2019. It was, according to the document, the first of two tranches requested by the Englishman for the Commissioner’s Cup—although it was the only invoice for the competition intercepted by Trinidad Express investigative journalist Denyse Renne.

Fenwick asked Griffith for a total of TT$2.8 mil to ‘run’ the competition. The Police Youth Club officers’ budget had been TT$360,379.50. It was rejected.

Fenwick’s line items, in the 27 May invoice, included equipment (TT$250,000), technical staff salaries (TT$235,200), administrative staff salaries (TT$190,000), marketing and promotion (TT$100,000), transportation (TT$70,800), and ground rental, maintenance and security (TT$49,200).

Two years later, there is no proof that Fenwick ever delivered anything while neither Fenwick nor Griffith responded to multiple requests from Wired868 to account for how the money was spent. Griffith also did not state the total amount paid, via the TTPS, to Fenwick and his British accomplices.

There were 46 youth teams scheduled to participate in the inaugural Commissioner’s Cup. However, 13 teams withdrew as a result of Fenwick’s failure to deliver uniforms and other equipment, which forced a last-minute restructuring of the competition.

Of the teams that remained, nine from the Northern Division successfully lobbied then Tunapuna Piarco Regional Corporation chairman Paul Leacock to sponsor their uniforms. Some teams borrowed their kit from neighbourhood teams, or their youth club leaders used from their funds.

Then Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) president David John-Williams offered some match balls, while Sports & Games donated practice balls. Otherwise community officers begged in their respective neighbourhoods for everything from balls and nets to boots and anything else their players needed.

Transport was another issue. Another Police Youth Club leader enquired about arrangements for the boys, in what appeared to be a multi-million dollar competition.

“The commissioner said to get the team there however you can,” came the alleged response.

Some team leaders managed to arrange transport for their outfits with police buses. Others dipped into their own pockets.

Fenwick charged close to a quarter of a million dollars, in his first tranche, suposedly to pay his own coaches to conduct training sessions at the various youth clubs. But that did not happen either.

Some youth club leaders conducted their own training sessions, others asked past or present players or coaches in their communities to do it for free, while parents sometimes volunteered out of necessity.

This was the ‘elite’ football competition for which Fenwick asked for TT$2.8 mil from taxpayers.

“I called around to a few youth clubs and everybody said something similar,” said Officer De Niro (not his real name, although chosen by him). “Everybody said we are on our own. We have to find equipment, balls, transport and everything on our own.

“We registered the team, they gave us fixtures—and beyond that we just have to figure it out.”

Worse, the Police Youth Club members claimed to be boxed in by what they described as Fenwick’s ‘parallel budget’ for the competition.

“If we ask for money for balls and somebody is saying balls were provided because they see a line item that money was spent for balls, then it creates a discord,” said Officer Roberts (not his real name). “[…] We had to make do with whatever we could. We just wanted to pull off the competition—not for fame or glory but to keep a promise to the young men who played.”

By 25 July, as the Commissioner’s Cup entered the knockout stage, Acting Inspector Phillips shared his frustration in a formal letter to the police commissioner. He listed Fenwick’s promises as:

- The attendance of representatives from [FFF] at scheduled matches for scouting purposes;

- Assistance with coaching and support for training programs at various clubs in all participating divisions;

- The procurement of equipment such as uniforms, balls, bibs, goal nets, goals etc for training and matches;

- A comprehensive scholarship program for Police Youth Club members who excelled through the entire tournament.

“The above were the main services offered by Mr Fenwick and his Foundation, however to date, none of the above have materialised nor has any communication been received from match commissioners in that regard,” stated the inspector, “with the exception of one representative, namely Mr [Anthony] Harrington of the said Foundation, who visited the match between Edinburgh 500 PYC and Rio Claro PYC on 16 July 2019 in the capacity of a scout.

“[…] Had it not been for the commitment, determination and tenacity of the officers assigned to the Community Policing Secretariat and the Police Youth Club leaders who participated in this initiative, the Office of the Commissioner of Police and the entire TTPS could have been in a very awkward and embarrassing position.”

Fenwick, according to the community officers, had only attended the tournament opener up until then.

Griffith, according to our sources, never officially responded to the inspector. Had he done so, he might have corrected Phillips on one point.

In Fenwick’s invoice on 27 May 2019, there was a line item for TT$100,000 for the ‘first batch select (2) players’ under ‘scholarship mobilisation’. No players were identified.

However two days after he submitted the invoice, Fenwick announced, via a press release, that the police commissioner’s son, Gary Griffith III, and Brandon Alves—both Football Factory players—had been awarded scholarships to Sunderland College in England, through two British companies, Catalyst4 Professional Sports Management Limited and Improtech, that he was at least loosely involved in.

“The partnership between FFF and the TTPS will provide expertise, knowledge and experience in the upcoming Commissioner’s Cup and Scholarship Program,” stated Fenwick, “to ensure a solid, professional and achievable program to project our program nationwide through the multiple police youth clubs.”

Griffith spent much of the last two years boasting about his son’s scholarship, which he claimed was the first of its kind awarded to a Trinidad and Tobago player. But did the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service pay for Griffith III’s ‘scholarship’—with money meant for the best performing players at the Commissioner’s Cup? (Neither Griffith nor Alves even participated in the competition.)

Wired868 asked Griffith the question directly. He did not respond up to the time of publication.

It is uncertain how many payments were put through for the Commissioner’s Cup’s ‘scholarship programme’ before Griffith finally pulled the plug on 1 June 2021. By then, inexplicably, the vehicle for the payments had moved from Catalyst4 to Bad Wolf Sports.

Bad Wolf Sports, which lists another controversial Englishman, Peter Miller, as company director and Fenwick as ‘technical director’, requested TT$800,000 from the TTPS for its ‘scholarship programme’ on 12 April 2020—although the company was not officially registered until 8 October 2020.

On 1 June, as Denyse Renne and Wired868 investigated the company, Griffith stopped a TTPS payment of TT$188,000 to the Ireland-based company. He said his change of heart was based on ‘due diligence’—at least 14 months after Bad Wolf, a ghost company at the time, sent him its first financial request.

Another Bad Wolf director, Perry Deakin, gave a different reason for Griffith’s about-turn.

“I believe we have been dragged into the middle of a significant ‘falling-out’ between Terry Fenwick and Commissioner of Police, Gary Griffith,” stated Deakin, in an email to Moorland Private School headteacher Jonathan Harrison that was copied to Griffith. “It seems Terry did not bring his son on as a substitute for his first senior cap in a recent international and they have fallen out quite badly about it.

“I am absolutely livid that we are being embroiled in this, particularly as we had set out to make a genuine difference with the proposed programme which would impact positively upon youngsters in the region. Fortunately, I have significant written records regarding correspondence with FFF and TTPS (and between ourselves of course)…”

Griffith denied that Fenwick’s failure to give his son a national senior team cap was a factor in his decision to terminate the business deal with Bad Wolf Sports.

Griffith and Fenwick appeared inseparable during the 2019 Commissioner’s Cup, though. If Griffith III and Alves benefited from that, hundreds of young men from deprived households across the country did not appear to be so lucky.

“Fenwick only donated six or nine balls for the [Commissioner’s Cup] final in the [St James] Barracks and that was it,” said Officer Roberts. “We were later made to understand that equipment did come into the country in the name of the TT Police Service—which would have meant no Customs fees—but it never actually got to the Police Service.

“[…] For the entire competition, there were no screenings of players, no equipment dispensed, no training or coaching. Nothing that the TTPS paid for came to fruition. For me, the money was paid under false pretence.”

He claimed that Police Youth Club leaders were embarrassed whenever players and parents enquired about the promised ‘elite zonal teams’ or scholarships.

“In hindsight, the Commissioner’s Cup appeared to become an avenue to facilitate a friend financially,” said the officer. “The children who needed help the most were exploited to make that happen.”

Regardless, he hopes the idea of the Commissioner’s Cup does not die with Griffith—if he is replaced as commissioner.

“If there is a new commissioner, we are willing to walk the ground again to get the country’s parents to buy in,” he said. “I heard a brilliant idea from [Rhoda Bharath] recently who wondered why we had not looked at local universities like UTT for scholarships. Well, the truth is we were just naive because the English guy made us all of those promises and we took them in good faith.”

His dream is for the Commissioner’s Cup to become a huge community event, which can draw large crowds. He hopes the tournament does not open its doors to external teams—as Griffith threatened to do last year, in an apparent bid to quell internal concerns about broken promises—which could force youth clubs to compete with established teams like San Juan Jabloteh and Club Sando for young talent.

“It should remain a police youth club initiative, which will see our own membership increase,” he said. “But we need to honour our commitments where prizes and incentives for the players are concerned. We must make our yes yes and our no no.

“If the Olympics is not proof that sport is dying, I don’t know what else we need. This can be an avenue to wake-up football!”

Whether the TTPS has a duty to local sport is a matter that may come up for debate again within the Service.

Wired868 asked Officer Roberts what changes he would recommend for the Commissioner’s Cup in the future.

“What I would change? No Fenwick!”

For a third Police Youth Club leader, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, the police commissioner is as bad as Fenwick. He accused Griffith of financially ‘gutting; the Police Youth Club and draining the enthusiasm of its officers, even as he took credit in the media for promoting sport.

“His impact has been degenerative,” he said. “Plenty officers fraid him and his petty, narcissistic ways. Others have low self-esteem and they take anything from him in the hope that he would call their name at a press conference or praise them in a TTPS social media post.”

And had he, Wired868 asked, challenged Griffith’s ideas for the Commissioner’s Cup, his employment of Fenwick or anything else?

“Like you don’t understand the Police Service,” he replied. “There can’t be no disagreement here. It is comply and then complain—complain to your God!”

Editor’s Note: Wired868 questions sent to Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith via email and text message:

Can you tell me how much money was paid to Terry Fenwick for equipment and services for the 2019 Commissioner’s Cup? Please be as detailed as possible.

How do you respond to complaints about Fenwick’s failure to deliver on his promises for the tournament? Was any action taken against Fenwick as a result?

Did Fenwick breach his contract in your opinion or anyone else’s at the TTPS? Were payments made to Fenwick or anyone else for the 2020 Commissioner’s Cup, which did not come off?

Why did you use your personal email address for TTPS business? Why did you involve Fenwick in the Commissioner’s Cup in the first place?

Was your son’s scholarship to Sunderland College part of the negotiations involving the Commissioner’s Cup? Did the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service pay for your son’s ‘scholarship’ to Sunderland College?

Griffith had not responded to any questions by the time of publication.

RELATED NEWS (August 2021)

The CoP and the Commissioner’s Cup: How Fenwick tried to turn a $300k PYC proposal into a $2.8 mil project.
By Lasana Liburd (Wired868).


Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith peered across the table at roughly half a dozen glum police officers in the Administration Building in Port-of-Spain. They were troubled about something but clearly too nervous to speak plainly.

From several accounts, Griffith had no intention of making it any easier for them to express their concerns.

It was April 2020 and the occasion was the first meeting of the planning committee for the second Commissioner’s Cup tournament. As far as several persons around the table were concerned, the commissioner had not yet addressed their issues with the first edition.

“It will not be easy for us to go back to parents and ask them to send their sons to another Commissioner’s Cup,” said one Police Youth Club official, “when they still remember the things we were not able to deliver in the first one.

“What do we tell them when they ask about that?”

‘That’ could have meant any number of things: the lack of uniforms for teams, the broken promise for scholarships for top players, then Trinidad and Tobago Men’s National Senior Team head coach Terry Fenwick’s failure to scout and train the competition’s best players, the lack of basic equipment for matches, etc.

According to a source, though, Griffith requested no details; instead, the lawmen were met with ‘radio silence’.

Rather than press home their concerns—not only for their own sakes but for the benefit of the young men within their districts—the officers retreated.

“The commissioner is a very funny fellah,” said Officer Roberts (not his real name), who spoke to Wired868 on condition of anonymity. “You want me to tell him how to run his competition? That is above my pay grade, sir.”

There is an irony in the officers’ concession of the Commissioner’s Cup to Griffith; the entire tournament had been their idea in the first place.

But more on that later.

Griffith did eventually respond but not directly to the lawmen. They got their answer in the media, as the commissioner declared that the Police Youth Club competition would be swung open for the first time to include teams outside the Service.

“We knew what that meant,” said Officer Roberts. “He was telling us that he didn’t need us. Instead of addressing our concerns, he would just replace our teams if he had to.

“It wasn’t about helping the young men in the Police Youth Clubs. It was just about having the tournament—no matter what.”

And so, with the Covid-19 pandemic entering its second wave and his own officers expressing concern about management issues within the tournament as well as the risk of organising one during a global health crisis, Griffith became the unexpected poster boy for contact sport.

“The CMO (Dr Roshan Parasram) does not draft, approve, or enforce laws,” said Griffith, in a Letter to the Editor on 15 July 2020. “[…] In fact, as the CoP, preventing or trying to persuade young people not to play sport after being boxed in their homes for months, is an avenue that can frustrate many young persons. And hence their energies can very well be diverted in non-productive, if not criminal avenues.

“[…] Hence these continuous comments trying to prevent young people from playing sport, are indeed a liability from a TTPS perceptive, and does not help us in our role and function.

“[…] When certain persons never kicked a lime in contact sport, they may not understand the bigger picture.”

For roughly two weeks, the commissioner of police sought to isolate and bully Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram into an about-turn and directly or indirectly lobbied everyone from Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and Minister of National Security Stuart Young to Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh and the court of public opinion.

Parasram stood firm.

“My statement, that I have said all along, is that children [activities] should be held back until September,” said the CMO. “The regulations as far as I know don’t speak to the age of people being allowed to conduct any [sporting] activity. [But] from my side that is where I stand.”

“These are your children [and] with the evidence of the changing epidemiology and how children under five are now dying,” said the health minister, “[…] are you prepared to take that risk with your child?

“Forget the regulations, I am asking parents a direct question: are you now prepared, in the face of the mounting evidence, that this virus has changed the way it attacks children… Is that a risk you are prepared to take?”

If Griffith had his way, at least 2,000 children plus technical staff members, officials and tournament organisers would have taken to the football fields across both islands in the midst of a general election campaign that caused its own health issues.

What persons who tried to follow the debate did not know, though, was the extent of the significant administrative issues which plagued the competition. Or that Police Youth Clubs were being snubbed for the event while teams outside of their scope of control got the green light.

If youth club officers could barely get balls and nets for games involving their own teams, how were they going to add Covid-19 protocols to the mix while ‘supervising’ guest teams?

Dr Parasram did not budge, Griffith backed down and the public was spared the answer to that question.

Within the Police Youth Club, the prevailing emotion was not frustration but relief. It was a far cry from the enthusiasm that lawmen had felt when they first approached Griffith in 2018 with a ‘revolutionary idea’ for the use of sport as a crime fighting tool.

The Police Service Commission appointed Griffith as commissioner on 6 August 2018 and the brash ex-army captain wasted no time in declaring war against ‘cockroaches’—his dehumanising metaphor for suspected criminals.

Griffith’s enthusiasm for sport, though, encouraged some members of the Police Youth Club.

“Being a Police Youth Club leader goes beyond policing,” said the source. “It is a mammoth task that is not recognised because hard police officers don’t see it as real police work whereas you are giving them less to do by stopping some of the children from becoming gang members.”

Up until 2018, the Police Youth Club had held an annual event for its various arms, with a sports day in one year and a cultural extravaganza in the next. The sports day consisted primarily of a march past, track events and novelty events like egg-and-spoon and bunny hop.

Some officers liked it that way; others wanted to include more traditional sports like football.

The latter group approached Griffith with a proposed ‘re-branding’ for their biennial sports day. They suggested that the sports day be replaced with a ‘mini-Olympics’, which comprised track, cricket and netball, and would be held over several weeks rather than in a single day.

And they wanted a football tournament which ran annually and created a source of talent for Police FC as well as ‘minimised nefarious activities within communities’ and ‘fostered a sense of pride’ within the same areas.

Police FC have one of the best youth football teams in the country. In 2015 and 2017, the junior ‘Lawmen’ represented the Youth Pro League in the Concacaf Under-13 Youth Championship.

Their screening process generally starts with a mini-tournament by a few of the youth club members who are more enthusiastic about football. A formal annual football tournament would significantly improve on that recruitment method.

They suggested that the first event, the replacement for the Sports Day, should be called the Commissioner’s Games, the second—the football tournament—the Commissioner’s Cup.

“The idea of the name ‘Commissioner’s Cup’ was to stroke his ego a bit,” said the anonymous lawman. “But also it is to ensure that it survives. Not all police officers, especially senior officers, appreciate community work. So if you, as the new commissioner, feel it is paying homage to you, then you would quicker hold on to it.”

By the time, the entire Police Youth Club was briefed on the idea in early 2019, it was already a done deal.

“It is something that came from upstairs—otherwise known as instructions,” said another Police Youth Club member. “We had no input. Everything came already drafted and we just had to do as they said and get the teams ready, with or without money from the community policing secretariat.

“And you could see the pleasure on some of their faces to name it thus. Because you know a lot of them love the ‘kiss ass’ mentality!”

It is safe to say, then, that not everyone was on board within the Service. If the football-loving officers felt they had staged a coup, their perceived control over the programme did not last long.

Once the idea was agreed upon, Griffith introduced Fenwick into the mix. A former England World Cup defender and a title-winning Pro League coach, Fenwick was a whirlwind of big ideas.

The initial idea from the Youth Club officers was to encourage community involvement by having prizes for the: biggest community attendance, best rhythm section, best cheerleading, and best welcome for opposing teams.

Fenwick promised to lift their event to another level entirely. Utilising his Football Factory coaches, he would scout the various matches and identify the most gifted players. They would then form an ‘elite team’, which would fly to Britain for tours, exposure and, for the best players, potential scholarships or professional contracts.

“All the Youth Club leaders and parents bought in to the hope for scholarships,” said the anonymous official who helped pitch the idea in the first place. “The idea behind the Commissioner’s Cup was to give young people in a certain demographic hope, and nothing speaks of hope more than the chance to see one of your peers get an opportunity, through the Cup, to go abroad and get a scholarship opportunity.

“We didn’t know much about that aspect. But when Fenwick came in and indicated that he had contacts who could deliver scholarships, we said alright, that would be the perfect opportunity for them.”

In their minds, Fenwick was offering his services to the Police Youth Club for a fee. The Englishman had other ideas.

On 25 February 2019, Fenwick sent a MOU to the police commissioner which ‘provides a clear playing, coaching, administration and academic development pathway for participants of the Football Factory Foundation’s Topflight Youth Football Development & Scholarship Programme targeting six regions/zones throughout Trinidad and Tobago, via the co-operative support of the Office of the Commissioner of Police’.

Fenwick’s proposed programme would ‘provide an opportunity for young talented players at junior level to develop their game under FFF’s International Football Programme, which is designed to prepare them for tertiary education in the United Kingdom and an international career in the European football leagues via the FFF’s Scholarship Programme’.

It is worth noting here that, in the nine years since Fenwick formed the Football Factory academy in St Clair, the only national player it ever produced was the commissioner’s son, Gary Griffith III—who somehow managed to earn national selection without ever excelling at any domestic level.

And while Police FC have picked up a string of junior trophies over the years, Football Factory were often the whipping boys of the second tier Republic Bank National Youth League or in the Northern Football Association.

Regardless, Griffith took the idea from the Police Youth Club officers to the Englishman, who vowed to ‘develop opportunities, motivate and provide encouragement to youths throughout the country with support from the Commissioner of Police Captain (sic) Gary Griffith and the promotion of co-location games and round robbing (sic) competitions to foster community, togetherness and support’.

Fenwick was not working for the Commissioner’s Cup; the Commissioner’s Cup was working for him.

Stated Fenwick: “The FFF shall assume overall responsibility for purchasing, care and maintenance of all equipment and assets of the programme.”

Essentially, Fenwick proposed that he would expand Football Factory by creating branches in six zones, with the TTPS footing all administrative costs as well as providing him with money to purchase equipment. The proposed bill was TT$2m to be paid every January.

In return, FFF would train the Police Youth Club players—all at taxpayers’ expense.

Sounds exorbitant? Even that was not enough for Fenwick. The Englishman insisted that he still be allowed to charge parents too.

“The FFF reserves the right to set registration fees at its own discretion,” he stated. “Registration fees shall be paid directly to FFF administrator at the regional academy.”

As he ably demonstrated during his stint in charge of the Soca Warriors, Fenwick is not the type to leave any money lying on the table. That might explain why, on 19 February 2016, he created a non-profit company called the Football Factory Foundation.

The Football Factory academy is attended by mostly children from middle-class and affluent families, whose parents pay TT$500 a month plus TT$450 a year for uniforms and is well served by corporate sponsors like Flow Sports, Digicel, Burger King, Nestlé, Gatorade—along with receiving generous donations from parents.

However, in an application to the Ministry of Legal Affairs, the FFF director described its ‘main area of business activity’ as ‘social development, educational, nutritional’.

According to the FFF application, “The undertaking of the company is restricted to planning and implementing and executing sporting programs and activities for young boys and girls in ‘hot spot’ areas.”

Wired868 spoke to three former employees about the FFF’s supposed non-profit work. One could not remember them ever having children from ‘hot spot’ communities, another suggested that perhaps they were two out of their 60 children, while the third said that actually the only children from deprived backgrounds were actually children of a coach at the academy.

“It is not illegal for a company to be both for profit and not for profit—but it can be unethical when it is the same people and the same assets,” said one employee from the Ministry of Legal Affairs, speaking on condition of anonymity.

“Although Legal Affairs gives the designation, it is actually the FIU (Financial Intelligence Unit) that investigates to see that the NGOs are not abusing their status and that everything is above board.

“Of course, the FIU does not have any powers of arrest so you know who they have to turn to if they see something suspicious?”

If it found something off-putting in Fenwick’s for profit/not-for-profit academy, the FIU would have to turn to the police, the same police that was writing massive cheques to the FFF.

On the same day, 25 February 2019, Griffith forwarded Fenwick’s proposal to his assistant, Jamila Julien, to be printed. The heading said ‘Draft agreement’. The commissioner signed the printed document.

There was no mention of young players being developed to represent Police FC. Instead, the focus was getting the players abroad on ‘scholarships’—which would actually be paid for by the TTPS—and professional deals.

It was not clear which party should reap the rewards if a player joined an overseas professional team.

The entire business was conducted using Griffith’s personal email address rather than his official work account.

Fenwick asked the commissioner for TT$2.8 mil to run the Police Youth Club competition. It is uncertain how much the Englishman squeezed out of the TTPS.

Trinidad Express investigative journalist Denyse Renne uncovered a 27 May 2019 invoice from the Football Factory Foundation to the Police Service for TT$995,000.

If Fenwick had invoiced for just TT$5,000 more, the TTPS would have been mandated to send the request to Cabinet.

Meanwhile, the Police Youth Club officers—who thought they were in charge of the project—submitted a budget of TT$360,379.50 for equipment, catering, inter-island travel and prizes for the Commissioner’s Cup.

It was rejected.

For the Commissioner’s Cup committee, the worst bit was not that Fenwick charged a king’s ransom to deliver equipment and services for a competition that they had created in the first place.

What hurt them the most is that the Englishman allegedly also failed to deliver on anything.

If Fenwick was not winning over the lawmen by repeatedly failing to deliver on promises, the same could not be said of his relationship with the commissioner.

At roughly the same time that Fenwick invoiced the TTPS for just under one million, he issued a release to the media which claimed that Griffith III and another Football Factory player, Brandon Alves, had been accepted in a ‘scholarship programme in the United Kingdom’ through an obscure British company named Catalyst4 Professional Sports Management Limited.

“Following three UK trials, including Sunderland and Queen’s Park Rangers, Griffith III, the son of Commissioner of Police, Gary Griffith II was accepted on his own merit for his abilities and commitment to work hard and smart to make it,” Fenwick informed the media.

Fenwick appeared not to consider that most coaches would consider it redundant to say a player was accepted ‘on his own merit’.

“It is fitting that FFF, who have engaged and partnered with Catalyst4 Agency and Improtech since November 2018, is now partnered with the T&T Police Service (T&TPS),” stated Fenwick. “The partnership between FFF and the TTPS will provide expertise, knowledge and experience in the upcoming Commissioner’s Cup and Scholarship Program, to ensure a solid, professional and achievable program to project our program nationwide through the multiple police youth clubs.”

Griffith has repeatedly dismissed any suggestion of a conflict of interest in the career moves of his son, which, more often than not, were hinged on Fenwick’s network. But the Englishman himself linked Griffith III’s Sunderland College scholarship to his business deal with the Commissioner’s Cup.

Two years later, Griffith III and Alves remain the only locals to receive scholarships, although neither even participated in the Commissioner’s Cup.

Catalyst4, incidentally, followed a pattern familiar to Wired868—based on previous investigative research into paper companies used in projects involving controversial marketing man, Peter Miller.

Generally, the companies are no more than a postal address and a director who criss-crosses several similarly obscure businesses.

Catalyst4’s only listed director is 50-year-old self-titled ‘financial advisor’ Neil Saxton, who is also a director of four other companies in the UK. One such company bears a name that suggests a similar line of business: United Sports Corporation Limited.

Catalyst4 was incorporated on 18 April 2017. United Sports Corporation, the nature of whose business was listed as ‘activities of sport clubs’, was incorporated on 6 December 2018.

Both companies had mailing addresses at the same building. And sitting alongside Saxton on the United Sports Corporation board for all of two months was none other than Fenwick himself.

A full year before Fenwick received a lucrative posting from the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA), he was preparing to sink his teeth into the coffers of the T&T Police Service.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

 

1]; } ?>