After four preliminary rounds and two days of Clinics, Digicel Kick Start Clinics head coach and England and Liverpool football legend, John Barnes, yesterday officially named four players who will travel to T&T for a week-long training stint. The four aspiring young footballers who have secured a place in the Digicel Academy following the inaugural year of the Clinics in New York's Caribbean Diaspora Communities are – Ronaldo Charlton, Tyrone Harrison, Lamar Larmond and Bradley Nestor. They were selected from an initial group of 150 young footballers to secure a place in the Digicel Academy in T&T from November 1-7.
At the Digicel Academy, they will join the selected footballers from the remaining four countries – as well as those from Haiti and Panama, where they will spend a week developing their skills and technical ability as well as learning valuable life skills such as personal discipline and commitment – under the leadership of top Barclays Premier League coaches from the Sunderland Academy, assisted by John Barnes. Speaking at the end of the clinic in New York, Barnes said; It was fantastic to be among the Diaspora communities of New York and to see that soccer is alive and well in America.The sport is really developing here and the children of the Caribbean Diaspora are driving that popularity. I look forward to seeing more from them at the Digicel Academy."
Barnes first selection for the Academy in T&T were the Haitian quartet of Jean Junot Valentin, Erickson Phédé, Jonathan Monplaisir and Gédéon Daniel who were chosen from a group of 30 young footballers
The Digicel Kick Start Clinics programme continues today in St Kitts/Nevis until Tuesday before moving onto Grenada, Suriname and Jamaica, then culminating in a week long training session at the Digicel Academy in T&T from November 1 - 7. The Digicel Academy will also host a 'coach the coaches' seminar in which coaches from across the region will get expert training from Sunderland AFC's finest teachers.
John Barnes Clinic Dates
• St Kitts & Nevis: Today – Tuesday
• Grenada: Wednesday – October 8
• Suriname: October 9 – 12
• Jamaica: October 13 – 16
• T&T: Digicel Academy – November 1 –