No big screens for Warriors game

DISAPPOINTMENT was etched on the faces of Anglican worshippers who, on the occasion of Corpus Christi, turned out at a family day at Skinner Park, San Fernando, yesterday to view the Soca Warriors’ historic World Cup football match against England.

They got a double blow when plans for cinema-type projection screens fell through, then the Soca Warriors lost 2-0 after a gritty performance.

An estimated 4,000-strong Anglican followers turned up at Skinner Park to watch the match. Bishop Calvin Bess announced at about 11.30 am, half hour before the start of the match, that the projection screens could not be provided by the sponsors who had advised that the monitors could not be viewed clearly in daylight.

In its place, Bess said, the sponsor provided two smaller 52-inch plasma screens.

But placed in front of the stands, the TV screens were hardly visible in the midday sun. Hundreds left the park and only a handful of die-hard fans, who braved the heat and sat close to the screen, were able to view the game.

The crowd that sat on the bleachers had to listen to the commentary of the match on the public address system.

After a nail-biting first half, with no goals scored by either side, many felt the vibes of a draw like the one the Soca Warriors pulled off against Sweden. Scores of people spilled over on the streets, searching for a location to view the second half.

Bess said it was a pity the larger screens could not be provided but felt “extremely encouraged” by those who remained throughout the game and continued to participate in the church’s family day festivities.

Then the moments of optimism turned into sadness, and for many of the churchgoers, tears when England scored twice in the dying minutes of the game.

Even so, Bess prayed to the followers to be positive.

“I want to ask the nation to take the positives of this World Cup in Germany to help us become a more positive nation. I am appealing to the illegal gangs to drop your arms and raise peace,” Bess said.