Jamaal Shabazz, who famously guided Morvant Caledonia United – under the club’s previous name Caledonia AIA – to the 2012 Caribbean crown, has reinstated himself as head coach of the club.
And while he vows to steer the side to the top half in the 2017 Pro League season, helping the club rise as the beacon of hope for the Morvant/Laventille region remains his biggest aspiration.
The new season kicks off today and runs through to December 17 Shabazz said that with the help of the San Juan/ Laventille Regional Corporation and the Sport Company of Trinidad and Tobago (SporTT ) - through its facilities management headed by Anthony Blake - the Park Street Recreation Ground in Morvant is set for an upgrade which is expected to include fencing of the venue and resurfacing of the playing field.
It’s only the beginning, according to Shabazz, who would like in the near future, a facility equipped with a dormitory and gym — somewhere he says young men and women can aspire to be a positive part of in a community constantly reminded of the negative effects of crime.
“A football facility will do wonders for a community like ours, and even if you blindfold Ray Charles (the deceased American music pioneer who was blind from age seven) he could see that.” Last season, for the first time in the ground’s history, Park Street welcomed top flight football when Morvant Caledonia hosted three of their Pro League matches at the venue. And, it was well-received by a football- mad community, with crowd attendances estimated around the three-thousand mark.
Only the Mahaica Oval in Point Fortin, on its very best days, could compete with such an estimate.
Shabazz believes an upgrade to the Park Street venue will present Morvant Caledonia United with merchandising and marketing opportunities, gate receipts, an overall atmosphere of belonging and a representative of the people and community.
“Facilities in the communities could ensure that the Pro League and its clubs go on to another level, financial viability, crowd support and participation and more accountability on the part of the players on the pitch,” said Shabazz, the club’s longstanding technical director and founding member.
He said the commitment of sponsors such as the Sport Company of Trinidad and Tobago (SporTT ), Massy, Courts, National Lotteries Control Board (NLCB) and National Petroleum (NP) to football and community development has kept Morvant Caledonia alive, and has given the club the impetus to continue to drive forward.
But without a home, he says clubs continue to struggle on the brink of extinction.
Morvant Caledonia, a former club of current Trinidad and Tobago national team coach Dennis Lawrence, national youth coach Russell Latapy, as well as another World Cup 2006 player Densill Theobald, and even Pro League CEO and former national forward Dexter Skeene, had, for a long time, been one of the most attractive teams to watch in the Pro League.
But the once formidable force of the Pro League have finished second-from-bottom in the last three seasons.
“It’s a good challenge for me now,” accepts Shabazz, who replaced new Dominica coach Rajesh Latchoo.
Pro League fixtures: Round One Match Day One
(Friday June 9, 2017) At Ato Boldon Stadium, Couva
Club Sando vs Morvant Caledonia United — 6pm
Central FC vs San Juan Jabloteh — 8pm
(Saturday June10, 2017) At Arima Velodrome, Arima
North East Stars vs Point Fortin Civic — 7pm
(Monday June 12, 2017) At Ato Boldon Stadium, Couva
Defence Force vs Police FC — 6pm
W Connection vs MIC-IT St Ann’s Rangers — 8pm