THIS DOG, WALKS WITH GOD

“I’m feeling very good about the World Cup. I’m really looking forward to it,” he said. “It’s going to be exciting and I look forward to the challenges.”

Nicknamed “Dog” for his aggressive nature on the field, as well as his pointed ears (like a Doberman), Andrews is never shy to talk about his main motivation, which is dog spelt backwards (God).

“Most of all, I’m a Christian and a child of God,” he affirmed. “So I try my best to help the younger players and the players that are around me, even my teammates.

“So it’s all about learning and trying to help out others,” Andrews continued. “It’s not too bad. Some people see me as a senior, and I try to do that all the time.”

Andrews’ belief in the Almighty became universally known during the 2004/2005 Scottish Premier League season where he was instrumental in Glasgow Rangers’ successful title quest, despite playing a number of matches with a ligament injury in his left knee. He refused all requests by the team’s management to undergo an operation, insisting that his faith in the Lord will help heal the troublesome knee. And he was back in the fold a month after he landed awkwardly after challenging Dundee’s striker Steve Lovell in a league match in March 2005.

The eldest of ten children (six sisters and three brothers), Andrews was born in San Juan on December 22, 1975 and took up the sport seriously when he joined San Juan Jabloteh as a pre-teen.

Andrews, like so many of the nation’s footballers, got his grounding at the Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) where he represented his school San Juan Senior Comprehensive. His assertiveness in the back earned him a spot in the national Under-19 team in the mid-1990s.

But he was not quite sure whether the sport would have provided a source of income for his large family. Seeking employment, Andrews took a job at Carib Brewery Limited, even though he still took the time to play for Carib FC at various football competitions.

Then, out of the blue, he was called up to the senior TT team in 1996.

While local football critics cringe at the number of foreign-based players on the team, Andrews has always been a regular member of the line-up, whether it is World Cup qualifiers, CONCACAF Gold Cup games or friendly internationals.

“God has blessed me and made me who I am,” Andrews noted. “That’s why I’m consistent playing abroad and making the national team, because of the Almigthy God.”

In 1997, Andrews was signed by then Scottish Premier League club Raith Rovers where he stayed for three seasons - he was named as the club’s Most Valuable Player in his final season - until he was sold by the financially-crippled club to Livingston for approximately ?50,000 in September 2000.

Similar circumstances repeated themselves at Livingston however. In March 2004, Livingston won the Scottish Cup and, after that season, Andrews copped the team’s MVP award before he signed a two-year deal with Rangers in May of that year.

With Livingston going into financial strife and most of the players (including Andrews) forced to face a wage cut, the powerfully-built defender was available on a free transfer and he took up the challenge to play for one of Britain’s most successful teams.

For the third time in his career, Andrews earned an MVP award at the club level, this time for Rangers after the 2004/2005 season, a season which saw Rangers lift the Scottish Premiership crown.

Celtic dethroned Rangers as, 2005/2006 champs and Andrews’ contract will end shortly, but he will not be rushing into anything, at least not during Trinidad and Tobago’s debut World Cup appearance.

“God has greater things in store for me,” he said. “What He has done already, I cannot thank Him enough.

“I think that the things that God has prepared for Marvin Andrews (are) great,” he added. “I’m still looking forward to a future and the things that are ahead of me because I know that my God is in control of my destiny.” While he is not donning the football gear, Andrews spends his spare time “serving the Almighty God and doing the work of God.”