Sports & Culture

I must add to last week’s sporting and cultural figures. David ‘Quick Silver’ Hodge is among the legends of goal keepers who have made it on the calypso circuit.

Paul ‘Pablo’ O’Garro was capable between the uprights, and other areas of the football field. He unleashes a big calypso number ever so often.

Linton Lewis paid tribute in song to his Windward Islands colleague Winston Davis, adjusting to life from a wheel chair. {{more}}

Lewis was a cricketer, and footballer with a contribution to the cultural arena.

Ardon ‘Panna’ Daisley is revered as nation’s first genuine pannist, having embraced the art from the visit of a Trinidad and Tobago steelband.

Panna developed a love affair with pan, after he made his mark on the cricket field with his off spin and formidable batting.

Roy Austin plays a high profile role as Ambassador for the US in Trinidad and Tobago. He is another of the Caribbean’s authentic personalities.

His sporting prowess has been established, and calypsonian Alston ‘Becket’ Cyrus immortalised him in song while paying tribute to his involvement in Mas.

It is consoling that sports have been recognised at the United Nations, and that physical education is seen as an integral part of the child’s development.

Efforts must continue to ensure that sports are entrenched in the school curriculum.

Sports personalities are tending to specialise from early. Formerly it was common for persons to engage in more than one sport.

Garnet Niles, touted as one of the regions’ finest wicket keepers, also played football for St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Robert ‘Rabbit’ Warner spawned a legacy in sports. His cricket and football skills have been spoken of in glowing terms, and his genes have transcended the family lineage.

Fred Trimmingham is a legacy. He was an allrounder of the finest order, a stout hearted cricketer. His efforts for the nation advanced its sporting causes. Trimingham was a dynamic midfielder, who copped the nickname ‘Garincha’ in reference to the Brazilian midfield wizard.

Trimingham linked up with another sporting icon of the Huggins twin sisters’ fame. That union has ensured a high calibre Vincentian sporting resource.

Mike Findlay, still playing cricket for his team Saints, is outstanding. His scope includes basketball, track and field. He hit the pinnacle and was seen as the world’s best wicket keeper. He proved his quality, and it was insularity that shortened his stint for the West Indies.

Findlay was a superb goalkeeper. Lester Huggins, from the Central Leeward town of Layou still commands respect for his prowess. He was a versatile footballer, and a gifted cricketer. Persons recall his sporting sojourn with pride and pleasure.

Carl Glasgow was a goalkeeper, and all-round cricketing skills, which the nation benefited from. Douggie Cambridge, Douggie Doyle, and Jeff Bailey were members of the invincible Notre Dame Football Club. That team dazzled opponents at Victoria Park.

Notre Dame provided the nucleus of the national football squad for many seasons. Cambridge, Doyle, and Bailey joined the list of persons with dual sporting representation having also played cricket for the nation.

Lennox John quit as president of the local Cricket Association after an extended stint. His sporting involvement laid the platform. He was a dependable opener, and stout defender at the national level in both cricket and football.

Oswald Nanton existed in Mike Findlay’s shadow on the cricket field, and when Findlay was away on West Indies duty, Nanton seized his opportunity to represent the nation. He secured his spot in goal at the national level on the basis of his performance.

Vin Phillips carved out a favourable reputation as national striker and tear away fast bowler. Albert Tesheira still plays cricket in the United States, having represented the Windwards and SVG. His football skills have placed him in elite company among those with double sporting national contact.

There must be something special about goal keepers. Their sight and coordination perhaps put them in good stead. They inevitably turned out to be good ball handlers. Elton Johnson is another wicketkeeker/goalkeeper who has represented the nation at both levels.

Colville Browne’s exhibition of talent came from early. He played for the Combined Islands in cricket and such was the regard for his proficiency, as he was one of the nation’s coolest and deadliest defenders.

Vincent John is best known on the football field. A versatile and deceptive player, John displayed his quality as one of the nation’s top footballers. He was an Under 19 national cricketer. Brent Samuel also made his name in football circles as a member of the national squad. But his foundation in sports came as a representative of the nation’s Under 15 Cricket squad.

Sancho Lyttle is making international waves, because she has found her niche in basketball. She was Draft number Five, and is lined up with Houston Comets for this year’s Women’s National Basketball Association.

Sancho represented the nation in netball at the Under 16, Under 23 and Senior levels, in a short space of time.

Dominic Ollivierre fits into a different grove of multi-talented sports personalities. He showed skills in squash, cycling and motor racing. His niche may still to be demarcated.

The package is open and the list will unfold with the progress of time.