My Network Story ... part 2

Here goes.... this was hard to publish!

I couldn't get enough of Commandos and wanted a computer at home for myself. Back then there was no concept of the internet and the computer I started out with was brutally slain by my own hands which meant I could only play Commandos when I went to school. Yeah, being captain of the chess team, practicing the high jump, and training for the Dacosta cup team, studying for A level Math, Physics, Technical Drawing, and the General Paper, I would still find time to play my Commandos...did I love me some army tactics or what.

Now to go back a little in the story... not much tactics employed here, but there are lessons everywhere!

Just after completing my CXCs I joined the Seba football club in Montego Bay. I played attacking midfield for the U21 team which won the U21 title that same season and the season after. In the wake of this I was invited to train with the National U17 football team, which was  preparing for the U17 Youth World Cup to be held in New Zealand, in 1999. Good things were happening! I never got into the final squad that made it to the World Cup, but I was a different player that was noticed by Renea Simoes and the other Brazilian coaching staff. Simoes said I reminded him of Theodore Whitmore and I must have because my whole style was copied from Theodore, who was my idol.

Everybody in Jamaica knows of Theodore Whitmore and his skills on the football field (currently coaches the Jamaica National Football Team). He was the super star of the Seba football team back at that time. I looked up to him and admired his skills.  I tried to mirror his style in every way and I would terrorize defenders with my skills and endurance. Tappa, one evening at training, was impressed with my presence and ability in training and stopped the training session after I had just done something spectacular and scored a long range shot. He then asked me to leave the field, and instructed the other U21 players to continue. I was at first confused , but then I saw him setting up 3 cones for what was going to be a drill. He then showed me one skill move and asked me to do the same. I did. He said do it 10 times and he stood aside to watch. This would happen each evening during training  and helped me to become a lot more confident on the field. I was now more terrifying than ever before. I would now start training with the senior players and picked up the name Costco Tappa. I hated that name by the way.

I didn't persist with Seba too much at that time because of schoolboy football obligations. And I wouldn't be telling the full story if I didn't mention that I was an indisciplined footballer.. I believed that my talent was enough and that I didn't need to practice or even turn up for training too often. Truth be told, after listening to every body telling me how good I was and being from the community I was from, I became a monster.  The coach decided to kick me off the team after I was my regular self on a team outing. That was when I really recognized how disgusting I had become. I did apologize and was reinstituted on the team but it was too late and a stain that couldn't be removed. I was now sitting on the bench for a team on which I was one of the best players. Ball control, vision, stamina, dribbling, off the ball movement, goal scoring.. You name it, I had it. But couldn't use it while on the bench. I was devastated. It wasn't the system against me, it was me against myself. The team ended up winning the Dacosta cup  that year, I was healthy and on the bench in the final!

There are many things I'd do differently.. but I've already written this story....