ON SATURDAY multiple national Girls’ Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) and Intercol champions Debe Secondary School, recognised their past and present team members for their contributions to the school’s competitive status and history.
The inaugural award ceremony was held at the school’s compound on the M2 Ring Road, Debe and featured dignitaries such as Member of Parliament for Princes Town, Joe Sirju, director at Sport Company of Trinidad and Tobago Annan Ramnanansingh, school’s principal Ramon Gunness, vice-principal Bob Roopnarine, manager of the Debe team Clive Auguste, parents and several past and current players.
At the function, the entire 2012/ 2013 squad was honoured and paid a special tribute to by school staff and the management team. With approximately four key players expected to make their exit at the end of the year, the event turned out to be a bitter-sweet one.
Patrice Vincent, who captained Debe for the past two years, expressed her passion for her school and was saddened to leave the successful girls football team. The Palo Seco Primary School graduate acknowledged all her teammates, coaches and managerial staff for their committed contributions towards making the team a national powerhouse.
She was pleased to be a part of a team that held football stalwarts Stephanie Bean, Mariah Shade, Linfah Jones and Elizabeth Ng Wai among others.
“The girls that I look up to and consider the best, I would have never thought that I would be one of them for this school. As time passed by with training and with experience, with our coaches Ramnanansingh and Arnold Murphy, we were able to achieve all these trophies.
I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of the team to thank not only the managerial team but those who have supported us 100 percent. Debe High is our home away from home,” she proudly explained.
Government representatives, Khan and Sirju also lauded the school’s sporting success in football and brought greetings from Prime Minister Kamla Persad- Bissessar and Oropouche East MP, Dr Roodal Moonilal.
In his address, manager Auguste revealed some of the unknown ups and downs of the team’s challenging journey over the past few years. He heaped praises on principal Gunness for sacrificing and bearing with the team for several years and providing financial assistance when necessary.
Auguste, who began training the team in 2004, has since carried the squad to over eight national titles. In 2008, they bagged a treble of national girls titles (Zonal, League, Intercol) and repeated the perfect performance in 2010.
“2012, we again proceeded to make a clean sweep and destroy everyone in the competition. We ended up in these last five years with a total of playing 75 games. There were roughly two losses, three draws and 70 wins. This in itself is a remarkable feat,” he stated.
Last year, the team was invited to the US by Consul General Rudrawatee Nan Ramgoolam to participate in a special tour of New York City. The girls played three friendly matches against college teams, in which they won two and lost one. However, Auguste revealed that this was just a start of many more big things for the prolific squad.
He added, “What’s next for Debe High? There is talk in the wings of another trip to a foreign country, probably Canada or the US. This school has created quite a stir to the extent that even now the tourism board is interested in holding on to the team as ambassadors and sending us to other countries to carry the national flag.”
The Debe team also credited their parents and sponsors for their long-standing support and commitment over the past years of challenging and time consuming training and matches. Even though they will be losing captain Vincent and a still unsure star-striker Kayla Taylor, the south-based team is determined to continue conquering girls football annually and break further barriers on the international stage.