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“[…] Chaguanas North Secondary has waited until the penultimate round of the SSFL Premiership division competition, for its maiden opportunity to be showcased on Sportsmax, while other schools have had multiple showings in that time—only to discover [on Saturday] that the fixture will not be aired live.
“[…] The players have been robbed of an opportunity to be seen on an international stage by their friends, family and potential scouts…”
Photo: Chaguanas North
The following Letter to the Editor on the manner of Sportsmax’s change in its televised schedule—from St Mary’s College vs Chaguanas North Secondary to Naparima College vs Fatima College—was submitted to Wired868 by Chaguanas North manager Germaine Raymond:
I write this letter to express my utter disappointment with the Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) and the Sportsmax team for the scant courtesy extended to the Chaguanas North Secondary School.
The school has waited until the penultimate round of the SSFL Premiership division competition, for its maiden opportunity to be showcased on Sportsmax, while other schools have had multiple showings in that time—only to discover today that the fixture will not be aired live.
No correspondence has been received from the SSFL or Sportsmax, advising that the fixture will no longer be televised. This is very distasteful, disrespectful, unfair and unprofessional to say the least.
Photo: Chaguanas North
The players have been robbed of an opportunity to be seen on an international stage by their friends, family and potential scouts. There must be some sort of reprieve for these student athletes and, in the capacity of manager of the Chaguanas North Secondary School, I call out the SSFL and Sportsmax to address this grave injustice.
Our players are people too!
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sorry for the lads—on both sides of the pitch.
But the SSFL owes it to the fans to portray the VERY BEST iteration of itself.
And they did that, on the day, by broadcasting the league-winning encounter between two classy units playing in a match that mattered.
It’s not that no one cares about the lads of Chaguanas North—but the SSFL and SportsMAX made a BUSINESS decision.
Kudos to them.
Good luck to the lads as they regroup in 2024 and perhaps, once day, again post a challenge in the Premiership.