Our little Soccer team

[Assasin]

While finishing up College a few friends along with myself decided to form our own team. We had a Jamaican organization named JAMCCAR in the community. It was mainly made up of women who wield some status and influence in the community. We approached them about starting a team and also tell them it would bridge a gap between the them and community youths who seemed to think they were not working in their interest while many of the members thought some of kids were downright rude and have no respect for the elder.

However myself, Charley (a former Trinidad national keeper married to a Jamaican), A friend of mine Greg(passed away), Nigel and Sony(whosaid he wanted no post, he is number one fan) put a thing. JAMCCAR would rent a field, pay entry for tournaments and help with Jersey while players just have to contribute membership dues of 30 dollars and 10 dollars if you are astudent.

This team because such a hit as other teams were trying to get semi pro players to come in, we had mostly a college team made up ofplayers in college. We had players from St. Johns, Downling College, Rockland Community College, Dominican college, and others. Anyone who ever say this teamplayed can tell you about the team, we had mostly Jamaicans, Trini, Irish andAfrican players. Every year we had a Jamaica Independence day game against RealCaribe and this was something that Real Caribe look forward to doing. The localGolden Krust helped us out and MyYout was here for a year to help with the team. We organized parties, and a special day that if you bought a dinner at alocal restaurant half the money belong to the team and these were successful.

I had coaches like the coach from Dominican College andRockland Community College (Grand Parents are Jamaicans) offer sponsorship forany Jamaican kid who wanted to be a part of their summer camps. We hadscholarship offers for players. Most importantly many of those players are nowcoaches. I will not claim responsibility as they played other places butJorneyhill (formerly of Connecticut) has his own academy, Harlon Smith wasunder 23 coach at Real Caribe last time I heard, Kurt Palmer (St. Johns nationalCollege Champion) is Assistant coach at Adelphi University, and St. JohnsAcademy, Ricardo Josephs(Trini was part of the St.Johns Championship team andplayed A league) is part of the St. Johns Academy, Jack(Kenyian who last time Ispoke to him he was assistant coach at a university in Pennsylvania), ChrisMiller was coaching a college soccer team in upstate NY, Ben (Liberian who wasone of the best mdfeilder I have worked ever worked or play with) assistantCoach at Dowling Collge when I last heard from him. Lance (forget the lastname)running his academy, Emperor was a guest player a few times and is also runninghis own academy in Jersey. Carlos Charles(St.Lucian) just called and tell me hewant to start coaching partime. Others maybe in coaching but I haven’t linkedwith them in years.

I am posting this to say, there are alternative way which wecan get our kids involved, had I know more about youth soccer at the time, Icould have gotten paid and still run a organization that is not costly to thekids.

The second is so many of those players have turned tocoaching and I am sure some are helping to get black kids involved.

However I stopped doing it when too many indiscipline actstarted to happen, not with the team itself but too many guys who thought thatit was the best way to show their support. I will not do anything that bringdisrespect to my wife or family members, it just got tiring dealing with ourindiscipline. Things like we had practice game at a college and the man themcan’t leave them herb, “Suck u….) to anybody even in front of the soccersponsor for no reason.

Sometimes we miss the most important part. How many timesyou see these soccer teams have raffle? How many times you see them at stop lightbegging or having carwash?? How many times you see these kids selling andlooking some sort of support, and the people in their community support them.

We can blame others but we have a lot of work to do.

[Paul Marin]

While finishing up College a few friends along with myself decided to form our own team. We had a Jamaican organization named JAMCCAR in the community. It was mainly made up of women who wield some status and influence in the community. We approached them about starting a team and also tell them it would bridge a gap between the them and community youths who seemed to think they were not working in their interest while many of the members thought some of kids were downright rude and have no respect for the elder.

However myself, Charley (a former Trinidad national keeper married to a Jamaican), A friend of mine Greg(passed away), Nigel and Sony(whosaid he wanted no post, he is number one fan) put a thing. JAMCCAR would rent a field, pay entry for tournaments and help with Jersey while players just have to contribute membership dues of 30 dollars and 10 dollars if you are astudent.

This team because such a hit as other teams were trying to get semi pro players to come in, we had mostly a college team made up ofplayers in college. We had players from St. Johns, Downling College, Rockland Community College, Dominican college, and others. Anyone who ever say this teamplayed can tell you about the team, we had mostly Jamaicans, Trini, Irish andAfrican players. Every year we had a Jamaica Independence day game against RealCaribe and this was something that Real Caribe look forward to doing. The localGolden Krust helped us out and MyYout was here for a year to help with the team. We organized parties, and a special day that if you bought a dinner at alocal restaurant half the money belong to the team and these were successful.

I had coaches like the coach from Dominican College andRockland Community College (Grand Parents are Jamaicans) offer sponsorship forany Jamaican kid who wanted to be a part of their summer camps. We hadscholarship offers for players. Most importantly many of those players are nowcoaches. I will not claim responsibility as they played other places butJorneyhill (formerly of Connecticut) has his own academy, Harlon Smith wasunder 23 coach at Real Caribe last time I heard, Kurt Palmer (St. Johns nationalCollege Champion) is Assistant coach at Adelphi University, and St. JohnsAcademy, Ricardo Josephs(Trini was part of the St.Johns Championship team andplayed A league) is part of the St. Johns Academy, Jack(Kenyian who last time Ispoke to him he was assistant coach at a university in Pennsylvania), ChrisMiller was coaching a college soccer team in upstate NY, Ben (Liberian who wasone of the best mdfeilder I have worked ever worked or play with) assistantCoach at Dowling Collge when I last heard from him. Lance (forget the lastname)running his academy, Emperor was a guest player a few times and is also runninghis own academy in Jersey. Carlos Charles(St.Lucian) just called and tell me hewant to start coaching partime. Others maybe in coaching but I haven’t linkedwith them in years.

I am posting this to say, there are alternative way which wecan get our kids involved, had I know more about youth soccer at the time, Icould have gotten paid and still run a organization that is not costly to thekids.

The second is so many of those players have turned tocoaching and I am sure some are helping to get black kids involved.

However I stopped doing it when too many indiscipline actstarted to happen, not with the team itself but too many guys who thought thatit was the best way to show their support. I will not do anything that bringdisrespect to my wife or family members, it just got tiring dealing with ourindiscipline. Things like we had practice game at a college and the man themcan’t leave them herb, “Suck u….) to anybody even in front of the soccersponsor for no reason.

Sometimes we miss the most important part. How many timesyou see these soccer teams have raffle? How many times you see them at stop lightbegging or having carwash?? How many times you see these kids selling andlooking some sort of support, and the people in their community support them.

We can blame others but we have a lot of work to do.

Nice but sad story. Is the club still going? Even if you didn't have the unfortunate indiscipline issues, if you tried to form a youth club here in South Florida and have it sanctioned by FYSA (which is almost a REQUIREMENT to play other teams of any standing), you have to be X amount of miles away from another club and blah blah blah. Even if you were to put together a team in South Florida, get the necessary sponsorships etc., the cost of success might be prohibitive. For example, if you win State Cup you then go to a week long tournament in Oklahoma. Could your team have afforded the costs of travel and lodging for 14 and 15 year old kids? Yes, we have to start somewhere, but it is not an easy path by design. They want to keep the lower demographic out. I'm convinced of it. For example, in AAU basketball, they put three teams together (I may be wrong on that number, but it is not a lot) with the best players in a region and send those kids to tournaments...these kids are from out of the high school system which is free for students; there is no such corollary in soccer; the AAU system makes a ton of sense as each locality can pick their best, but, too much politics and too much b.s. ... not a good system with the geographies involved.

[Assasin]

South Florida like where I am in GA now is a bit organized. A few years ago I was working in the inner city school district and learned of the Soccer Scout program where the Scouting Assoc. of America was trying to get minorities involved, and they realize that minority loved soccer so, if you had a field and an organization they would assist but the kids also learned the pledges etc.
The guy running the program was a pastor and wanted to get more schools from the area involved. I discussed with the Scout leaders and wrote up a proposal. They also paid stipen to volunteer coaches and it is up to you if you want to charge a little more. I wrote the proposal and the pastor submitted it after budget and the next year I was working on the other side of town.

I know in NY there are some local tournaments you could enter and I know Emperor just put his thing together. Wish if we would share some of the available info.. but there are ways of getting on. Yeah in South Florida I know it harder as it is more organized.

No the team is no more, as usual we don't really have a lot leader. Since my crew left out, nobody never saw it fit to take responsibility.