Sterling hails ‘Skill’ Cole as the ultimate teammate and friend

Western Bureau:

Former national midfield star Alton ‘Noah’ Sterling, who is now based in the United States, says the death of his former team-mate Allan ‘Skill’ Cole has come as a big surprise to him because, while he would speak to the fellow midfielder from time to -time, he had no idea he was not in good health.

“When I heard the news, it shook me up because this man was my brethren both inside and outside of football,” said Sterling. “We regularly call up each other and talk about the good old days. We were two Rastafarian players on the team at a time when, if you were not an exceptional Rastafarian player, it was difficult to get into the team.”

In fact, Sterling, who was forced to walk away from the St Elizabeth Technical High daCosta Cup team as a schoolboy footballer because he refused to eat meat and drink milk, said, having the exceptionally talented Cole in the national team when he played created a buffer against discrimination, as, with Cole, the best player on the team, a Rastafarian, there was no room to facilitate discrimination.

“Allan was like my brother, we look out for each other and it made life so much easier in the national team,” said Sterling, who, like Cole, had the distinction of playing professionally overseas in his prime. “If you can remember, Allan came down to Montego Bay to play with us in an exhibition game at Jarrett Park.”

Interestingly, in the era when Cole was the dominant midfielder for Santos FC, when that club dominated the then Craven ‘A’ National Premier League, Sterling was playing much the same role at Montego Bay’s Seba United, which was arguably the best rural team at the time.

Cole also had a soft spot for another top Montego Bay player, former star striker Paul ‘Tegat’ Davis. He regularly stated that, if Davis had gotten a good break in one of the world’s top clubs, he might well have become a much bigger football personality than just being the Caribbean Footballer of the Year in 1991.

“Allan was a man who respected good talent so, when he saw the talent that existed in Montego Bay back in the day, he showed us a lot of love and respect,” said Sterling. “Allan was one of those players, who, regardless of which team he was playing for, whenever he came to Montego Bay, he got a lot of love from both players and fans. I want to express my condolences to his family and just to say that he will be greatly missed.”

Former St James Football Association president Wesmore Thomas, who presided over the parish’s football during the glory days of the 1980s and 1990s, also had fond memories of Cole, who was at one time being tipped for the local domestic league.

“Allan ‘Skill’ Cole, what a player he was,” wrote Thomas in a Facebook post. “One sunny afternoon in Montego Bay, Cornwall College versus Vere Technical, Allan ‘Skill’ Cole, Kenneth ‘Bop’ Campbell and Herbert ‘Dago’ Gordon light up Cornwall College football field … RIP Allan ‘Skill’ Cole.”