Following an intense three-day Digicel Kick Start Clinic over the weekend, Kwami Kirby, Denny Henry and Ngozie Harvey were the top three boys selected from a field of 32 by Chelsea FC Foundation coach Steven Winnett and his colleagues. The three lucky boys will travel to Barbados for a week’s training at the Digicel Kick Start Academy later this year.

Before making the official announcement, Winnett said it wasn’t an easy decision for him and his team; “I think this is a talented squad and it’s the first market that we’ve had such a hard task of selecting the top three,” he said.

He encouraged those whose name weren’t called to not be discouraged but to continue to play hard.

The wild card selection could also secure a fourth spot for Antigua as Cristian Fernandez was selected as the wild card nominee. Cristian will compete against 13 boys from across the participating markets – all of whom are vying for one of the three spots.

The campaign, which will tentatively start in the first week of July, will be heavily driven on social media in a short video of Cristian displaying his football skills. It will also feature on the Digicel football website and Facebook page where he will be soliciting votes from friends to secure his spot in the top three.

The top three finalists with the most votes will win a seat to join their colleagues in the Digicel Kick Start Academy in Barbados.

The clinic was a 3-day session which started with the 32 boys competing for the top three spots on Friday and Sunday. The national under-16 female side received training from the coaches on Saturday and a total of 28 coaches from clubs around Antigua benefited from the coaching the clinics session also held on Sunday.

Villa Lions Academy coach Sowerby Gomes, who played an integral part in organising the Easter tournament and selecting the boys for the clinic, was very pleased with the performance of each player. Following the announcement, he said, “I am humbled to hear the positive feedback from the coaches and that’s mainly because of the boys hard work ethics. I worked with a few coaches to ensure the boys were prepared after we selected them in Easter and we practised three times a week for almost two months preparing them physically and mentally so they could perform well at the clinic.”

He also thanked the teachers for affording the students the opportunity to participate in the clinic as some of them had exams. “I would like to thank the teachers and school principals who allowed the boys to move forward their exam date so they could participate in the clinic this weekend. I want to congratulate Ngozie, Kwami and Denny for making the cut and with all our votes we will ensure Cristian gets in as well,” he said.

This is the third year Digicel Antigua & Barbuda hosted the Digicel Kick Start Clinic, geared towards developing football from a grass root perspective with the assistance of the Antigua & Barbuda Football Association and its stakeholders.

The three finalists were (left to right)  Kwami Kirby, Denny Henry and Ngozie Harvey

Left to right, Zak Wooster, Chelsea FC Foundation coach Steve Winnett, wild-card nominee Cristian Fernandez and Scott Nurse.