February 12, 2025, 08:29:57 AM

Author Topic: Trinidad & Tobago 1974 Youth Team 50th Anniversary and ReUnion  (Read 4394 times)

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Offline Deeks

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Hello Forumites. This coming Friday the TT 1974 Youth Team will be having a 50th year reunion at the Home of Football. We participated in the Concacaf U-19 tournament in Canada. We placed 3rd in the tournament. We lost 2-0 to Cuba in a playoff to meet Mexico in the final. We did however held Mexico to a 0-0 tie in the prelim. group game. The only dropped one point in the tournament. They ran thru. everybody else.

The day we had to leave for Ottawa, the flight was postponed because of hurricane Alma. I was excited to leave, but disappointed we could not leave. But when the tail of the hurricane hit TT, Bredos I thank God we did not try to leave that morning. You must not mess or play ignorant with mother nature. But we did leave in the evening. We had no phone or had no idea of internet. We only had radio. I sat close to the radio and heard a special bulletin that the national Youth team had to be at the airport at 4:00pm. The Great Arnold "Chicken" Leotaud (Team Manager) came and pick me up and we headed to Piarco on our football adventure.

On Saturday 24th, at CIC 9:00 AM, the team will be doing a clinic with St. Mary's. The coaches will be Mike Grayson, CIC coach. Kendall Walkes and Richard Chinapoo. All 3 were members of our team. We had an arrangement to do this clinic  at Ato Bolden Stadium auxilliary field. But the  TT U-15 is currently involved in a Concaf tournament. Their group was moved to Tobago. That screwed up everything. They tried making arrangements to get the U-17 Team. But we were told that U-17 will be with their school teams preparing for the upcoming  Colleges league season. So the last choice was Mike Grayson and CIC.

Forumites, It is 50 years since our "magic carpet ride". It is/was one of the greatest experience in my life. I came to TT from St. Lucia with my mother in 1960. She was looking for a better life. St. Lucia was not the big tourist place back then. It was all agriculture. banana, cocoa coffee. Life was ketch arse. Fortunately for me, I passed Common Entrance from St. Joseph R.C. for QRC in 68. That is all she wrote. I was a ball jumbie. Played in 3 Intercol, Went to one North final. Lost to Tranquil. Totally "devasted". Jumped at the opportunity when TTFA had trials. Persevered and was able to make the final cut. Fellas!!! It was not a privilege to play for TT. It was the greatest honor in my young life to rep. the RWB. Standing at attention with butterflies in your belly when your anthem is playing is forever imprinted in my psyche. It is in my DNA.

So if allyuh have the time please check out the clinic and engage with them fella. Unfortunately, because of extenuating circumstances I will not be there. Blessing. Peace.

« Last Edit: August 21, 2024, 11:45:24 PM by Deeks »

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: Trinidad & Tobago 1974 Youth Team 50th Anniversary and ReUnion
« Reply #1 on: August 23, 2024, 02:10:39 AM »
Thanks for sharing the above; pity you can't be on the ground.

You mentioned Hurricane Alma. It has a sort of unique history of its own: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropical_Storm_Alma_(1974)

How many players from the team will be present at the reunion?

Personally, it strikes me as insufficient that junior NT players could not be available in homage of the significance of the occasion. I do not think we pay/place sufficient emphasis on the relevance of historical legacy. I find this particularly egregious when the ask is merely a couple hours on a Saturday morning. As I create this message, several possible approaches to have made that occur have come to mind. I find it difficult to accept that all of them would have been exhausted as possibilities. I suspect not enough 'heavy lifting", to realize the objective, occurred.

A History of Trinidad and Tobago Football should be within the coaching and player education compendium offered by the TTFA. I wonder how the federation would fare in assembling that as a project.

For islands that are a handful of decades "independent", there is an observable casual relationship with the past, memory and its relevance to building resilience in the present.
« Last Edit: August 23, 2024, 02:15:01 AM by asylumseeker »

Offline biga84

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Re: Trinidad & Tobago 1974 Youth Team 50th Anniversary and ReUnion
« Reply #2 on: August 27, 2024, 08:57:58 PM »
Sounds like a real honour and something you will never forget! Any articles or references about the team you can share? Or pics? What about the roster? Always good to keep memories strong when we can.

Offline Deeks

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Re: Trinidad & Tobago 1974 Youth Team 50th Anniversary and ReUnion
« Reply #3 on: August 28, 2024, 06:56:14 PM »
I will get some pix later. The squad:

Robert Francis, Capt, Defender, Naparima. Deceased.
Gerard Homer, V. Capt, Midfield, Naparima.
Michael Grayson, Forward, QRC.
Winston "Winty" Hackett, Forward, Sando Tech, Deceased
Keith Weekes, Midfield, Tranquility, Deceased.
Trevor Rudd, Forward, School Unknown.
Johnathan Wills, GK, Chatham Youth Camp.
John Granville, GK, Bishop's Tobago
Earl Carter, GK, St. Bede's Tunapuna.
Kendall Walkes, Midfield, Progressive.
Richard Chinapoo, Forward, Trinity.
Curtis "Cedars" Murrel, Forward, Tranquility
Michael John, Midfield, Diego Sec/Fatima
Brian John, Forward, School Unknown.
Michael Sati Boodhoo, Defender, Arima Govt
Steve Reyes, Midfield Defender, Arima Govt.
Sam Philip, Defender, School Unknown.
Ian Lakhan, Defender, Tranquility.
Ulric Butcher, Defender, QRC.
Peter DeCoteau, Defender, QRC.
Derrick Lewis, Defender, DiegoSec/Trinity.

Francis, Homer, Grayson, Walkes, Derrick Lewis, Murrel, Brian John, Chinapoo, Carter, Granville all played for the senior national at some point.

Derrick Lewis(16) and Keith Weekes(17) were the youngest players on the squad. The played in the following Concacaf tournament in Puerto Rico in 1976.

Michael Maurice was 17. He did not make the cut. Wills beat him out. But because of his age the selectors thought he would be a "surety" for the 76 tournament. But due to some age discrepency issues with some of the Central Americans, Concacaf brought forward the age requirement. He was then too old by a month or so. Also Bert Neptune, Nancoo, Miguel Hackett, and a guy named Woods from Tobago were cut for the 76 tournament.

Sydney Shade a diminutive but very skillful player from South who was on the our training squad got injured when our team played Central St. George Football League at Constantine park. He was a very good dribbler. He failed the fitness test. It was sad. But he recuperated and did play a couple games for the senior national team later on.

I also thought that Winston"Tom" Philips would have made the squad. But unfortunately he was recuperating from a broken leg which he had sustained when Tranquil played QRC at Fatima in North Intercol semifinal in 73.
« Last Edit: August 29, 2024, 01:22:48 PM by Deeks »

Offline Deeks

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Re: Trinidad & Tobago 1974 Youth Team 50th Anniversary and ReUnion
« Reply #4 on: August 29, 2024, 10:20:36 AM »
There were four officials on our squad, of which 3 are deceased. Alvin Corneal Head coach. Roderick Warner(assist. coach and trainer) deceased. Arnold "Chicken" Leotaud, Manager, deceased. Edmund Turton, physio, deceased. Egbert Solomon, Chef-de-Mission, deceased. Alvin is still there but is going down slowly.

Offline Deeks

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Re: Trinidad & Tobago 1974 Youth Team 50th Anniversary and ReUnion
« Reply #5 on: August 29, 2024, 01:27:42 PM »
Sorry Guys. I made an error on Gerard Homer( :busshead:). Had him as deceased. He text and boof me up. "who wants me dead". Forumites, Gerry is alive and well in TT. He has a computer service business. If You need to fixed your computer, please give him a check