Abiola scores big in US

Trinidad is littered with people who were brilliant football players in their day. Some never maximised their potential, some never had opportunities, some allowed their opportunities to slip away. However, there’s one who will not allow this fate to befall him and he currently leads the Young Harris College, Georgia in scoring and assists.  He is currently ranked 12th in the US National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Soccer League in scoring  and he has been named to the NJCAA All-American team. That’s the story to date of 20-year-old Abiola Clarence. “I just received the All-American letter on Monday,” said Abiola who is home for the holidays. When asked what his feelings were after receiving the coveted invitation to play, he replied: “I was expecting it. I don’t mean to sound cocky, but I believe that I worked for it and deserved to be on the team.” Abiola first experienced organised football in 1994 while he was in fourth standard at Diamond Vale Government Primary School.

He laughed as he said, “It was fun but we used to get real licks. I only played for one year though because my mom didn’t like the fact that I was missing school to play football so she put a stop to it.” “My first game for St Anthony’s was the final game of the 1999 season. The team had lost a few games and there was not really anything to play for. Grovey (Coach Nigel Grovesnor) gave me a run.” The coach was actually getting a glimpse at his leading scorer for the 2000 and 2001 seasons who would lead the Tigers to the first two in a string of North Zone titles. A young Abiola could be seen practising in his Diego Martin driveway after school. “I always dreamed of being a football player, that’s many people’s dream. As you get older, you realise that it isn’t easy, the system doesn’t work like that,” commented Abiola. Just as his mother was there to redirect his focus when he was missing school to play, his father was there to let him know, “there is life after football, you can’t play forever so you need something to fall back on. An education is the best thing to fall back on.”

Abiola attributes his maturity and composure, both in life and on the football field, to his exposure to the older people around him. “I had my father, older brother and cousin Kwesi (Kwesi “Hoppy” Hopkinson of the Radioactive sound system) to look up to. Being around them taught me how to hold my own. I was always able to see what they were going through in their lives. In life now, I don’t panic in the situations I face because it felt like I’ve already experienced these things through them.” Accordingly, when asked who are his mentors in life, Abiola replied without hesitation, “my mom and dad for sure, and my cousin, he was always there, like another big brother. With regard to football specifically, Latapy is who I really liked, everybody wanted to play like Latas when they were young.” The 5’ 11” striker spoke of his experiences in the US, saying, “my first season wasn’t all that good, adjusting to the pace of the game and the pace of life wasn’t easy. I didn’t live up to my expectations for myself. In addition I was living in the shadow of the Westfield brothers who came to the school before me. I just stepped it up, worked harder and hard work always pays off. I worked even harder when my coach asked me to carry the team (Young Harris).” In his mature manner he offered some advice to any younger people who wished to excel. “Work hard at anything you do, do it to the best of your ability. The little extra you do would leave you better off in the long run. Oh! And always listen to your parents,” added Abiola with a chuckle.