Farewell to my close friend, brother Allan ‘Skill’ Cole

THE EDITOR, Madam:

Allan and I first met and played against each other in 1966. He was representing the Jamaican Secondary School boys and I was representing the School boys of Trinidad and Tobago. We then went on to represent our respective National Senior Football Teams as teenagers.

In 1967 while I was representing Trinidad and Tobago in a CONCACAF tournament in Jamaica we both received professional contracts to play in the inaugural soccer season in the United States. We were both contracted to play for the Atlanta Chiefs in Georgia along with two other Jamaican nationals named Henry Largie and Delroy Scott.

The four of us lived together in Atlanta while being confronted by the racial injustices, segregation laws and bigotry that prevailed in the Jim Crow South. We dealt with all those civil rights violations and injustices on a daily basis and were still able produce excellence on the soccer field by winning the first ever NASL (North American Soccer League) Championship and the first professional sports title for the city of Atlanta in 1968.

We all were pioneers of soccer in the United States back in the late 1960s and made significant contributions to the development and popularisation of the game of soccer in the USA.

After playing pro-soccer together in the USA we maintained a great friendship and kept close ties. We followed each other’s playing and coaching career’s closely. I also followed his managerial endeavours as he toured the world with his good friend Bob Marley.

Farewell to my close friend and brother. May his soul rest in eternal peace. Amen.

GALLY CUMMINGS

Former TT International and

Coach