I went down in the HC yesterday to take in what was on paper a excellent double header between St. Anthonys/Compre and Fatima/Malick.

However, the product on display and the event was a total waste of time, effort and energy. In fact both games were so poor, I made up my mind to give schoolboy football a rest until intercol. I may be tempted to watch the second round of games between Fatima and St anthonys on wed, but that depends on the weather and what else I have on my schedule.

The 20$ I paid to watch them two games would have been better spent buying two stag and a nip of puncheon. In fact the only entertainment i got for the entire evening, was listening to a cuss out between a man asking for a Mackeson by the Bar and the attendant who tell him she cyar sell him that at this event.

Any advocate of the SSFL as a developing ground for players, as prep for players or as a form of big football or entertainment is far removed from Trinidad and has probably not seen a SSFL game over the past 5 yrs. In fact the standard on display was worse than last years set of matches. All them small arguement about past players and national team dis….if any of you watch a ssfl game today alyuh would feel shame . What I saw on display yesterday, those fellas on the field could not even make a class P.E. side in my time.

How to put this in perspective for you all…..For the male readers, imagine somebody holding on to yuh stones and not only pulling it, but swinging hard. That is the kinda torture I was subjected to watching these games yesterday.

Lemme give you the lowdown…

1) Crowd, rain was falling but it had about 300 people TOPS if so much to watch 4 schools play. Further, the majority of the crowd were past student like myself or parents, very few school children, with Malick having the largest presence. followed by fatima. This is another saddening thing, the tradition and rivalry is gone. When I was a small man is every game you going to see, the rope around the field had rows of 7-8 people deep. Now you could barely find enough crowd to line up along one side of the field.

2) It didn’t even have a speck of eye food to distract you from the game. Not one mommy, sister, teacher, friend or smallie for you think to yourself…”now that is a wall painting”, “ah boy if only I was 17 again” or “two more guava season and she good to go”

3) No noise, small talk, chanting, atmosphere etc……the only talk I get was a old man sitting next to me just as bored who said..I remember Dwarika hitting a man two step over fan and a drag, right dey…them was d days boy, now them fellas cyar even trap.

4) The few youths who were there were running wild, it had all kinda pseudo gangster some “taxing” others from the colleges for money or instructing them to buy food and drink for them. I was also entertained by a Youth who looked like a walking piece of cocoyea wrapped in cotton candy. Forumites, the youth have orn pink air force ones, pink socks, pants, pink jersey that long like a nighty and a pink hat that was two sizes too big under a pink bandana….and small man had NO GIRLS with all dat.

5) The refereeing was very questionable

6) The teams all four of them played with no shape, structure or plan. If you could get 5-6 passes in a row you were lucky. I made it a point to count the number of passes etc, and all you would get it a voom kick, a bad pass, a worse touch or a hard jam. Nuttin constructive.

St Anthonys will get the award as best dressed for another year…a long sleeve skin tight euro finish top, red black and white, team members also had polos and tracksuits all sponsored by subway.

Compre uniforms looked like they were all XXL and all Compre players were 14 yrs old. All the uniforms were too big and it was jokey seeing the players swimming in them. Compre is not the same team of old, all the players are small, no knock no shape no skill. Molino did not stand out. Neither did any other national team players why……..the level drop off so bad and is only a setta scrap and bad pass….so by extension their game fell off too.

St Anthonys had the breakaway game down pat, but their fwds ent good atall…especially a lil dougla number 7 who feel he good but ent ready. Anthonys had the better of exchanges in the game and used their size and strength to good advantage.
Anthonys have some big youths, tall, strong and clumsy. Muscling off the Compre players who all looked like their diet consisted of Burbon and Pepsi. You could nickname Compre the nashy XI.

Also for this entire game I see only two beat….Two…for the entire game….Where is the “entertainment” that colleges league is known for?

Molino when the game was 3-0 took a ball and waltzed past 3 players in the box to slap home and a St. Anthonys fwd took on two men on a breakway hitting a Compre youth a spanner tru he legs and after collecting it..belt the onrushing defender. Dais it for entertainment. Nuttin else, no fan, no push past, no inch beat, no drag, no cyap. Nuttin…like the youths now dont even know how to beat or run past a man.

I get so vex watching bad pass, mistimed tackle, cyar trap…I pull out my phone and start to play game yes. Is only after a while I ketch mehself and say…but you could play game anywhere for free…yuh pay money to watch this…at least try to get some value.

So I rock back and tried to watch the rest of the game.

When the second game started I say alright…My alma mater, lewwe see them do it.

Boy more of the same yes.

I first get worried bout Fatima when I saw the size of the keeper….the Youth might be good, but he is about the same height as the corner flag. It is the same fella who deputised when Foncette was out last season, but a whole yr pass and you ent grow. Other than that I see Knox, I see De Freitas, I see the Youth in the back I say right they go be safe….safe where?

Both Malick and Fatima were big in size,they had structure and they had a game plan. Both teams knocking the ball, trying one two etc. Fatima was living in Malick half but not doing anything with the possession. They come like arsenal third XI on a bad day. Knocking playing the ball reach in the area…cross to nobody, bad pass, a fall down or a mistrap and so it went whole game.

Not a beat pass in the first half..malick ent get a shot on goal, Knox and defreitas look ordinary but playing a brand of friend football in the corner.

0-0 at the half.

Second half Fatima all over Malick, but malick holding firm defending good and playing the ball long up the flank.

It was then the only beat I see of the game expertly done by the Malick right back a youth with a plaits who was the player of the game for me. Keeper rolls out the ball and the Fatima Fwd come biting in a full speed…”Plaits” fakes like he kicking it long
and then rolls the ball with the sole of his foot thru the Fatima player legs. The Fatima youth back dun twist and when Plaits collect it on the other side belt him and rest the man on he bumsee……What made it worse is that Plaits was at walking speed, calm and effortless.

Then Malick played a excellent long tru ball on the carpet and the Fatima last stopper jess couldnt ketch the Malick fwd. One V One with the keeper…who did the correct thing coming out and covering the angle but the shot is taken and the keeper gets it “tru his legs”…Malick 1, Fatima 0

It was about 65 minutes gorn and I say yuh see me…I had enough of this…friday evening after a hard week of work is to enjoy oneself not take torture.

I just couldnt see Fatima scoring any goal….certain players pulling stones,roast, begging for a sub and the coach pulling everybody except them off. I does just cyar understand, when a man having a bad game or clearly out of depth why you would not fix the problem….why hope that he go snap out of it and handle heself all of a sudden, when he done get blow past umpteen times.

Now dont be fooled eh…bad pass, poor trap, no beat, cross to nobody, voom kick was going on right tru in this game as well. But Malick didnt have nuttin going fwd, Fatima playing most of the ball in Malick half and I just was fed up from watching two pullstones games one after the other.

So I headed to the Hilton for a bram called “Cocktails” to relax and unwind.

It only when I there a man text me….yuh side get lix..ha ha. So I ent thinking nuttin……. I see when we collect a goal so I say the game is 1-0…. is only when I watch Kaiser post jest now I understand what he as talking bout.

Forumites, as I say..SSFL is a big disappointment and let down. I ent puttin no effort to watch no game in a hurry because it is not worth it, financially, time wise, emotionally or in terms of entertainment value. I may go and see the St. Anthonys match or the QRC one but I taking a rest till intercol.

On a serious note, SSFL cyar develop nobody to play football in the present state that it is in. Current players have said it and results on the intl scene is proof of that. We need to have something else in terms of youth development.

All good players should be affiliated with clubs and play in the junior club leagues, keeping the best talent together and competitive.

Till next time.