‘It has really affected us’

PHILLIP WILLIAMS, head coach of St Andrew Technical High (STATHS), says the passing of former schoolboy football standout, Andre Salmon, has dealt a heavy blow to the school’s community.

Salmon, who was hospitalised for weeks after being shot, succumbed to his injuries yesterday morning.

Williams remembered Salmon as a talented and brilliant student-athlete, who had joined STATHS’ football programme as a child, but had left a man.

“He spent five or six years with us and he came to us as a baby,” Williams reminisced.

“He was just 12 years old when he came to us and he served the team and football programme well while he was here with us at STATHS.”

Salmon was a key member of STATHS football programme, representing the school throughout the under-14, under-16 and Manning Cup age groups.

He played a major role in the STATHS’ under-16 team that won the school’s first football title in 35 years, and was one of their standout players during the 2023 Manning Cup season.

Williams said Salmon’s passing has heavily affected his players, a fact he saw firsthand in their training session yesterday.

“He represented the programme well and we’re not taking his loss lightly. It has really affected us because we are a tight family at STATHS,” he said.

“We had a training session this morning and you could see how affected the players who played with him were and those who came into the programme after him, knowing he was one of those who helped to build on the position where STATHS is at the moment.”

Salmon’s passing has dredged up painful memories of the late youth national representative Omar Laing, another STATHS player who passed in 2022.

Laing was shot and killed in Kingston while celebrating his 18th birthday.

Salmon and Laing were friends during their time at school, and Salmon had dedicated his goal in the 2022 ISSA Urban Area U16 semifinal to Laing’s memory.

Williams said both players remain treasured members of the school’s community, and he is confident his players will play on in their memory.

“It’s not that we’re used to losing our players like this. He is another one of the players that we’re losing in the same amount of years, but they are very dear to us,” Williams explained.

“We will definitely play on strong in his memory but it has taken a massive toll on us because he was a recent player and one that we loved dearly.”

gregory.bryce@gleanerjm.com