Do you remember sharp shooter Eric Lavine?
What about the heroic Eyre Sealy and Philip Blagrove?
How can we forget midfield magicians Anthony “Daisy” Clarke and Adrian Hall?
Man on Magazine just teased you with a trip down memory lane with some of the most celebrated names of Barbados football of yesteryear, whose heroics would have laid the foundation for our current Tridents, to accomplish the success they have received in recent times.
Bajans do enjoy a journey along nostalgia avenue, which is often met with the old colloquial statement “wait wuh become uh he/she?”. It is because of this affection for the good ol’ days that we introduce to you; “Where are they now?”
A column where we feature some of our past football heroes and catch up on the earlier days while they share what their life has been like since retirement from the beautiful game.
This week we feature former national forward Trevor Thorne, who shared some of his best moments in the gold and blue and how he stays connected to the game.
A fleet-footed sharp shooter in his days, Thorne represented the senior men’s team from 1989 until 1995, scoring goals in each territory he touched.
It was consistent goal scoring at the Empire Sports Club, which earned Thorne that well-known reputation of a quality forward. However, he had other successful stints at YMCA under coach and mentor Ancil Marquez, Weymouth Wales, Pride of Gall Hill, Brittons Hill and finally at Ellerton FC where he retired as player/coach after the BESS tournament.
Thorne was a significant cog to the Empire wheel, which went unbeaten in 1994 and won the domestic league and Cup competitions. He scored most goals during that season and led the national team front line as a result of those heroic performances. “TT” as some of his mates would occasionally call him, listed the 1994 invincible season as one of three memorable moments in his career.
The notorious 1994 Caribbean Cup Qualifier encounter versus Grenada at the National Stadium, which Barbados won 3-2 (4-2 by tournament rules) in extra time was one of those moments.
Thorne scored the opening goal for Barbados, before Gregory “Lalu” Goodridge doubled the lead. However, Grenada cut the deficit in half, which sparked panic for the Barbadians as they needed to win by a two goal margin to advance to the next round.
The competition rules were organized in a way that the goal in extra time, known as “golden goal” was worth two goals.
Barbados scored a bizarre own goal to take the clash into extra time and Thorne scored the goal which saw our senior men advance to the Caribbean Cup final tournament.
The other notable moment for the prolific goal scorer was a hat-trick he scored in Guyana in a Caribbean invitational tournament.
An international hat-trick is a rare feat, only very special players have experienced such an accolade, according to Thorne, who also said he is one of few who has achieve such a feat for Barbados.
“I joined an elite crowd which contained, I believe Llewellyn Riley and I’m almost certain Jerry Alexander has a hat-trick too. So that’s an illustrious club when it comes to Barbados football.
They’re not many men that have done that”, said Thorne.
After a horrific incident in a Shell Cup encounter versus Dominica in Trinidad & Tobago, which saw Thorne leaving the match with a broken jaw, he decided to call it quits after six years of international football.
During his playing days, Thorne was pursuing his studies in Information Technology(IT) and eventually became an IT specialist where he now writes and installs programs and trains people to operate those programs.
“While I was playing football I was still working and studying so that I can have my qualifications in case football didn’t work out as a career”, Thorpe said.
Thorne has combined his IT expertise and football knowledge to form a communications company called Commentators Sports Incorporated (CSI), which provides the service of live commentary and music for sporting events.
Sports administration has also caught Thorne’s interest and he has been one of the main organizers of the Old Boys League Invitational Tournament and Vice President of the internationally renowned Barbados Invitational Masters Football Classic which hosts Barbados’ best masters football clubs and their counterparts from the Caribbean, North and South America and Europe.
The game has evolved since Thorne’s tenure as a player and he is pleased with the transformation made by the national association and the national team.
Thorne said the increase in funds provided by FIFA is one of the major reasons for these positive changes. Variables such as specialized staff, training, equipment and approved facilities play a major role in the national team’s performance.
“The preparation now is a lot better and so are the facilities. The science of the sport has also improved a whole lot.
The opportunity to analyze players and teams’ playing styles have also improved”.
The English FA Cup is the world’s oldest cup competition at 150 years old, with just a mere 43 clubs out of 736 lifting the trophy in the competition’s history.
A cadre of world class players have made their name in the sport, as a result of winning this trophy. Players such as Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham and Steven Gerard have earned the title “kings of English football”, courtesy of their FA Cup triumph.
As the saying goes, “there’s a bajan in everything” and the FA Cup is no different.
Emmerson Orlando Boyce, the former Barbados senior men’s captain created history in 2013 when he led Wigan Athletic to a 1-0 victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup final at the Wembley Stadium. It was the first Cup title for the Latics and Boyce became the first Barbadian to win the coveted trophy.
Boyce has identified that moment as one of his greatest experiences during his career. “It was a magical moment when we went to the FA Cup final against Man City.
As a boy playing in my local park, we use to dream about playing at Wembley in the Cup and scoring the winning goal. So to actually captain my side out at Wembley in front of the fans and in front of my family, holding Joseph, the lucky mascot and beating Man City, who I believe were league champions at the time. Walking up them steps to see a sea of blue, then lifting the cup was one of the best moments in my career”, Boyce said proudly.
The road to Wembley started for Boyce as a 10-year-old boy in the streets of Aylesbury, England.
After delving into cricket and athletics in his earlier years, a friend took Boyce to play youth football at Aylesbury United and he was in love immediately.
Under the guidance of coach and mentor Steve Greenhalf, Boyce was one of the most feared forwards in the youth league. During one of his seasons he scored a remarkable 73 goals in 30 matches.
Boyce’s goal scoring heroics and performances were monitored by a number of professional clubs and at 16 years old he signed for Luton Town, who were the ones who turned the burly, robust, goal-machine into the no-nonsense, tough-tackling defender that the world knows.
In his first year at Luton, Boyce did so well in the academy that he was called up to the senior team; a bitter-sweet experience for a then 17 year-olds.
He recalls, playing right back alongside, current Burnley Football Club manager Sean Dyche in his first match and a winger blowing by him twice in five minutes to score.
Boyce said the press were relentless in their broadcast, with one headline reading “Men against Boyce”.
However, that moment made Boyce stronger and he went on to achieve a number of accolades which included league promotion and individual honours at the club.
At age 24, the newly-promoted Crystal Palace Football Club added Boyce to their Premier League roster, a move he described as a dream come through.
Boyce produced some outstanding performances in his debut season, but that time was cut short after suffering a broken foot during a training session.
Crystal Palace were relegated that season (2005) and Boyce sadly could not do anything about it.
A year later Wigan Athletic took Boyce back to the Premier League where he enjoyed nine illustrious years with the club, eight of which were in the premiership. He tallied 263 appearances with the Latics and scored 13 goals.
Boyce was most remembered by Barbadians across the world for his display of patriotism which was exposed on his wrist in the form of sweat band which carried the Barbados flag.
The son of Barbadian parents Melvin and Lucille Boyce, captained Barbados for eight years (2008-2016), an experience he said he is totally grateful for, especially the relationships he has formed with team mates and people of the island.
“When I played for Barbados in my first game, I wasn’t going to come back. I had some challenges with certain people.
Some of the players said let’s remain connected and I said to them, whenever you see me on TV, I’ll be wearing a sweatband and that’s a reminder that I’m thinking of all of you, and they’re the ones that persuaded me to come back and it’s been one of the best decisions of my life”, said Boyce.
After two decades of professional football, Boyce is now retired and still very much involved in the game via coaching, commentary and as the CEO of the Emmerson Boyce Foundation.
Boyce said it has not been an easy transition and he has faced a number of personal challenges, however he credits his support system which includes former Wigan owner David Whelan, for being helpful, during a very difficult time in his life.
“The exit strategy is not very good. I know the PFA (Professional Footballers Association) is helping, but it’s hard.
I went and saw a counselor because when I came out of football, from 16 years old to 36, it was just football, so to be released into the big world is hard to deal with sometimes”.
Since wearing the blue and gold jersey on his debut in 2008, Boyce has made it his purpose to help the growth of football in the island and the Emmerson Boyce Foundation’s recent marriage with the BFA, is a clear indicator that he intends to fulfill that function.
“I think I’ve come along at the right time. Everyone I’ve spoken to has been positive.
I’m not saying I’ll change the world but, I’ve been in the Premier League for a good part of my career and I have so much knowledge to give back to a country that wants to go places.
I can offer guidance, experience and share information which can help raise the standards”.
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