Yorke presents Man Utd training gear to TT

Former Trinidad and Tobago captain Dwight Yorke made good on his promise to provide a large shipment of Manchester United training kits and equipment to a number of teams in this country.

Back in June, Yorke announced that he was able to use his influence at United where he is one of the club’s ambassadors, to obtain the traning gear through the Manchester United foundation. The stock arrived in Port of Spain earlier this month and was received by Minister of Sport Darryl Smith.

“I am delighted to confirm that a massive amount of Manchester United kit and football equipment such as boots, balls and cones have finally arrived in Trinidad and Tobago and was collected by the Ministry of Sport. The intention here is for these items to be distributed to several of the young teams in Trinidad and Tobago which are underprivileged or simply don’t have the means of accessing this kind of football gear in order to engage in playing matches or training,” Yorke said. “Personally it is a great feeling that I’ve been able to make this happen in spite of my schedule at the moment which is a pretty hectic one with the new role I’ve been assigned in Dubai,” Yorke continued.

“For me, my home country is always in the back of my mind and as it relates to football development I am pleased to assist in any little way that I can. We’ve got a lot of talented youngsters coming up and it’s important that we take the right approach and the right steps with them,” Yorke added.

The former Aston Villa striker joined GEMS Education and the ESM Football Academy and was earlier this month unveiled as an ambassador in the UAE (United Arab Emirates).

Yorke commenced his role this month working with beginners to advanced players.

“As a member of the FIFA Development Committee, I am extremely passionate about helping young footballers achieve their immediate and long-term goals,” said Yorke, who won the treble with United in 1999 scoring 52 in 96 appearances under Sir Alex Ferguson from 1998 to 2002. “I can understand the challenges of playing football in a small country and really relate to their dreams of playing in the major football leagues around the world.”

Managing Director at ESM Football Academy, James Bowring, said: “ESM Football will stick to its strong long-term vision of helping produce quality players in the UAE, and giving boys and girls the opportunities to consider a professional career in the ‘beautiful game’ post their studies.

“We all understand the importance of development of young players here in the UAE. Dwight Yorke will be a fantastic addition to our development programmes, offering an invaluable insight in to playing at the highest level. This experience and view point will benefit the talent we have here and help produce a new generation of players.”