They came from Never Dirty and Chinnapoo, Caledonia and Coconut Drive, Mon Repos and Vegas as a matter of fact, football fans came from all over Morvant and surrounding areas to witness the historic inaugural Pro League match at the Morvant Recreation Ground. The home team, Morvant/Caledonia United may have lost the match 4-2 against neighbours and arch rivals San Juan Jabloteh but even Jabloteh boss Jerry Hospedales was impressed with the turnout at the Park Street venue, “This is special, this is what we need in football” is the quote from the veteran football administrator.
Those sentiments were echoed by TTFA President David John-Williams whose football roots are deeply Pro League and he must be whispering to the new W Connection President to find a ground in Savonnetta. While the eagerness of Ma Pau Stars owner Darryl Mahabir must be heightened as he awaits the re-opening of his beloved Sangre Grande Recreation Ground especially after seeing the results of his marketing thrust in Point Fortin, Barataria and now Morvant.
The crowd was estimated to be 1,700 surrounding the popular venue in the heart of a sports loving community although the members of the “real VIP section” made it to be around 2.2 million, give or take a couple thousand. This optimistic crew included some of Morvant’s well known ballers and sport personalities such as Shadow, Spence, Fires, Trevor, Corneal and of course The Serrettes (almost all of them). The leader of the section was undoubtedly Athletics boss Ephraim Serrette who managed to lure the likes of Olympic legend Hasely Crawford and TTOC head Brian Lewis to the best vantage point at the top of Park Street to view the entertaining encounter.
Other dignitaries were on hand at the event which in the end, was so much more than a Pro league football match. The Minister of Sport Mr. Darryl Smith and Parliamentary colleague Mr. Adrian Leonce, MP for Laventille East/Morvant backed the initiative and both expressed great satisfaction with what transpired in the community on this memorable Sunday.
The San Juan/Laventille Regional Corporation also partnered on the project which brought top flight football into the community of Morvant, that was the reason for the near permanent smiles on the faces of Councillors Kwesi Antoine, Franz “Delamo” Lamkin and Lyndon Lara as well as CEO Mr. Kenwyn Pantin.
The day was a victory for Morvant/Caledonia United, plus their sponsors Courts and Massy despite the loss on the field, because the effort highlighted a positive for a community which has its share of negatives. The Sports Company of Trinidad and Tobago can also take a bow with Mr. Anthony Blake and his team bringing the field up to the high standard of the Pro League in just under four weeks. But the big winners on Sunday were the people of Morvant/Caledonia because following the match the argument amongst a group of youngsters was “which one of them would be playing in the Pro League first”.