Prisoners versus officers football match surpasses expectations

THE AWESOME Sports International’s initiative of hosting a football match last Sunday evening at the Victoria Park, featuring prisoners against a combined team of prison officers and police officers, surpassed the expectations of the organisers.

Renson Haynes, head of the Awesome Sports International, reflecting on the idea, noted: “It surpassed my expectations”.

Haynes, who is a former St Vincent and the Grenadines footballer, said that he never knew the event would have touched the chords that it did.

“ … Yes I knew that persons would have turned out to the match, but the love, togetherness and camaraderie shown touched me, and at some points of the match, it was very emotional for me,” Haynes told SEARCHLIGHT.

Supported by relatives and close friends of the incarcerated, Haynes stated, “The public really came out… It was overwhelming and for that period of the match, the prisoners were like celebrities, as the crowd was on their side, applauding every play.”

Joining Haynes in his sentiments was superintendent of prisons Brenton Charles.

With a touch of emotions, Charles in speaking with SEARCHLIGHT immediately following last Sunday’s match, stated: “ I am overwhelmed… I did not expect this type of reception to the match… The public was very supportive of the inmates, in fact they were backing them all the way…Generally, the public is always appreciative of the positive things which inmates do.”

Commenting that the match would serve as a means of helping in the reformation efforts by the prison authorities, Charles is hopeful that those who resent persons who deviate from the laws of the land, would see some good in them.

“There is a particular sector in society, who have not embraced the second chance approach towards inmates and we are hoping that initiatives like these would help to break that barrier, that people who make mistakes, they could arise from these mistakes and become decent citizens,” Charles proffered.

Charles acknowledged that whilst the prisoners were beaten by a scoreline of 4-2 by the officers, the prisoners came out the better bunch, as he envisaged many positive changes among the inmates.

The feature match was part of a three match event, dubbed “Jingle Balls”.

The match featuring prisoners against the officers was sandwiched by the two other matches.

Match one brought together a combined secondary schools team against a SVG Community College outfit, with the latter trumping 1-0.

The final match saw a Shandell Samuel XI taking on a Renson Haynes Foreign Based XI. Both teams played to a 3-3 draw in regulation time, but the Shandell Samuel XI won 5-4 in kicks from the penalty spot.