Former Guyana national coach Wayne Dover is settling down to business in neighbouring Trinidad.
Dover and his sidekick Kavin Pearce, are in charge of the Caledonia AIA Under-21 team in the Digicel Pro League Reserve Division in Trinidad.
At present the Dover-coached Caledonia Reserve squad is holding the second spot in the Reserve Division with 15 points after winning five matches and losing two.
The division is led by Joe Public with 19 points and they defeated Caledonia 3-2 two weeks ago. Caledonia won their last match against St. Ann’s Rangers 3-0.
Today is a major test for Dover’s men as they meet CLICO Jabloteh at the Larry Gomes Stadium. Guyana national youth players Brian Baker, Kestore Jacobs and Dwayne “Deco” Blake will be in the Caledonia Reserve lineup for today’s game.
And only three months into their two-year deal with Caledonia, Dover and Pearce have been offered an additional job to work with the Barataria Senior Secondary School in the popular Trinidad & Tobago Secondary Schools Football League.
According to Dover, the school which is based in the same community as the Caledonia club, approached former Guyana Technical Director Jamaal Shabazz to help them find two coaches for their programme.
“Coach Shabazz has arranged it where we can work at the club and still work with the school as well. This is a big step for us since the Secondary School’s League in Trinidad re-ceives tremendous publicity and media attention,” explained Dover.
“Juggling the two is going to be tough but we came to Trinidad to work – we did not come here to play,” stated Pearce who plays a more administrative role at the club but will be doing a lot of coaching at the school.
“It will be very interesting to work in that school environment and getting their team which plays in the second division and to bring them up to the first division is the kind of responsible challenge our careers need at the moment,” added Dover.
Asked about their adjustment to life in Trinidad, both men admitted that it was very hard work but said they were very happy with their decision to move on.
“Sometimes our only day off is a Sunday because Coach Shabazz is a workaholic but we have a deep satisfaction at the end of the month knowing we have worked hard for our money. More importantly we get a fair day’s pay for a hard day’s work,” Dover said.
“Guyana still looks at a coach as a person who wants the job so badly that they will take it under the most unfair and inhumane condi-tions. People feel the coach is an amateur who does not deserve to get paid for his efforts.
“Well, if the plumber, the garbage man, the general secretary and even the maid can be paid why the coach can’t be paid for his efforts. All those coaches who want to pretend that the title of coach with no decent salary behind it will feed their families then I wish them all the best.”
Asked if he will consider working in Guyana football in the near future Dover left the door open. “Once people in Guyana football, be it club or federation, are willing to treat me as a professional I am willing to talk but from what I am hearing Guyana’s football is in good hands and I wish the programme all the best…I have made tremendous sacrifices for Guyana’s football and was part of a team that brought its reputation to a very respectable posi-tion. Guyana’s football will always be very dear to my heart,” Dover concluded.
