They have played together, worked together and now they are back together.
Former United Petrotrin coach Brian Williams has joined the technical staff of W Connection as assistant coach to Stuart Charles Fevrier.
“It’s a pleasure to be with a club of such honour as W Connection,” said the former Trinidad and Tobago international and a member of the famous Strike Squad.
Coach Stuart Charles Fevrier and Williams’ relationship stretch back some 25 years having played together at Aviation Services Limited (ASL) in the 80’s. Worked for the same club, W Connection in 2000-2001 and in 2003 they reunited again when Fevrier was handed the T&T National Senior Team coaching profile with Williams and Jamal Shabazz appointed his assistants.
Williams is one of two assistant coaches revealed by head coach Stuart Charles Fevrier to work alongside him this season—the other being Brazilian Jose Luis Seabra.
“In football players and coaches come and go and it’s no different for W Connection,” said the Fevrier.
“We have always been ambitious and this year we want to improve generally on our showing last season,” continued Fevrier sighting that his club added great value with the inclusion of Williams and Seabra into his technical staff.
Seabra retired after W Connection’s last 2008 League match in a goalless draw against eventual winners and rivals CLICO San Juan Jabloteh, ending a nine-year playing career with the David John Williams owned club.
Meantime Brian Williams, 47, is also no stranger with the operations at Connection having coached at youth level with the club back in 2000-2001.
Williams was released by United Petrotrin in September 2008 with the club blaming unimpressive results and replaced him with Leon Carpette to finish the season.
“I will be assisting Stuart Charles Fevrier this year and I can say that I’m happy to be here and happy for the opportunity presented to me by Connection,” said Williams, also a former T&T U-20 head coach.
Williams remains an employee at Petrotrin despite not being involved in the company’s football club United Petrotrin. He said that he is now balancing his day job as well as role at Connection for the love of the game.
“Being an employee at Petrotrin I have to arrange my own training time at Connection. It will mostly see me working with the team on evenings and this is understood by the club.”
Williams expressed his desire to one day return to head coach stature wherever the opportunity exists, but for now, he is going to enjoy his time at Connection.
He also took time to wish best of luck to his former club, United Petrotrin, ahead of the new season.
“I am pretty satisfied with my work that I have done there. Unfortunalty the bosses there thinks that the club needed to go into another level and that they needed someone else to do that, hence the reason I’m no longer at the club. I left the club in fourth position with two rounds to go and I think I’m pretty satisfied. As an employee there I think United Petrotrin is very close to me having starting them off in the professional football and now I would like them to carry on and wish them the best of luck as a professional club.”
Brian Williams, in his three and a half years service as head coach guided the Oilmen to knockout titles in 2005 (Lucozade Sport Big Six) and 2006 (Toyota Classic).
Former fitness aid to Brian Williams at United Petrotrin, Wayne Lawson has also joined the W Connection staff.
“He (Lawson) is probably the best fitness coach locally,” said Fevrier. He also has a lot of experience and has worked with the (Trinidad and Tobago) National Team for over 20 years. And we feel we have someone who can take the team to another level.”
“With Williams, Seabra and Lawson we can say we have a very good technical staff this season. We have had good staffs in the past and have done very well, so now we are hoping that these that are now in will continue the W Connection legacy.”
“Our players now have more staff that they can pull knowledge from. Brian can do a lot in motivating the players and provide quality assistance to me in the technical area while Seabra, with his good tactical brain can add more and I’m sure he will have the respect of the players.”