2 months ago
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NEWLY APPOINTED Clarendon College daCosta Cup coach, Devon Anderson, says he is not looking to fill the boots of previous coach Lenworth ‘Teacher’ Hyde, but will try to put his own unique mark on the many-time former champions.
After eight glorious years, Hyde parted ways with his beloved alma mater to take up the reigns at Dinthill Technical High School.
Hyde left behind a legacy that included four daCosta Cups and four Oliver Shields, as well as a style of football widely agreed to be the most attractive among schoolboy teams — Anderson has a tough act to follow.
Nevertheless, the former Holy Trinity and Hydel coach believes the Chapelton school will continue to be a force to be reckoned with under his watch.
“I have taken on this task, which is not an easy task. I am not saying I am going to fill his shoes. But I will try very much to put my pieces to this puzzle.
“They are hard shoes to fill and I am not going to try and fill them. I will try to put my footprint in the sand alongside those who have gone before, and try to make a positive impact on the school where football is concerned,” he said.
Clarendon, who last won the daCosta Cup and Olivier Shield in 2023, have developed a dominant ball-possession style under Hyde, and Anderson believes his philosophy is not markedly different from his predecessor’s.
Anderson believes that having the same backroom staff Hyde did, also means there is not likely to be a big switch in the style of play many local football fans have come to admire and expect from Clarendon College.
“My philosophy of football is, let the ball do the work. And as far as I have seen, their philosophy is the same.
“They are a ball-playing team and I am a ball-playing coach. So I don’t think it will be much of a problem combining what I know with what they have there and try to make it work.
“They have their people in place, and I am just an addition to what they have there, so nothing much will change,” he insisted.
Anderson, who finalised his agreement with the school late last week, said he is not yet familiar with the squad and wants to temper expectations going into his first daCosta Cup campaign.
Nevertheless, he said his aim is to at least maintain the team’s high standards in the competition.
“I don’t know much about the team. All I know is that the squad is very young. It’s a young team. It’s more of a rebuilding process. But I am one of the coaches known for playing young players, so whoever is there it doesn’t really matter.
“I am not going there to make a statement. I am going there to put my craft to work. I am not making any promises for the first season. I am going to learn a new culture, learn how they do things that side, and try to put my bits and pieces together, and at the end of the season, may the chips fall where they may.
“But I will learn as I go along. One step at a time, and adapt and learn as I go along as quick as possible and try to make my mark, without any expectations for myself.
“This is my first season. So it’s one step at a time. I don’t know (when we will win daCosta Cup). But when I restarted a five-year dormant programme at my last school (Hydel), I never knew we would have made it to the final in the second year and could have won. I never knew we would be to back-to-back semi-finals. So let’s see how it goes,” he commented.
English (US) ·