RSSR Academy celebrate 20-year anniversary

RSSR Football Academy celebrated its 20th anniversary at the President's Box at the Queen's Park Oval in St Clair, on Friday night.

Ruthvin Charles, along with Dexter Harris, formed the club 20 years ago in an effort to bring the communities of East Port of Spain together. The club was named after four TT footballers – Reynold George, Sammy Llewellyn, Selris Figaro and the late Russell Tesheira. The four players have all represented TT over 50 times.

Among those who attended the function were MP Fitzgerald Hinds, former Miss World TT Athaliah Samuel, former national footballer Hutson Charles, president of the Veterans Footballers Foundation of TT and TT Football Association board member Selby Browne and Tesheira's widow, former Finance Minister Karen Nunez-Tesheira.

"It feels great (to celebrate 20 years)," co-founder Charles said.

Reflecting on the decision to name the club after national players, Charles said former great players must live on. "That was the purpose in 1999 when the organisation was formed to honour those fellas so that their name would be remembered."

Charles said they raise funds on their own, but he wants corporate TT to come on board to assist. "That is the thing about us at RSSR, we don't look outside for help because we know that we have to help ourselves. Strangely though this gem has been there for 20 years and corporate Trinidad has never stretched forward their hands," Charles said.

However, Charles thanked those who have supported the club including the East Port of Spain Development Company, All Sports Promotion, Kenny's Sports Centre and the Inter Agency Task Force.

Anthony Harford of All Sports Promotions, the master of ceremonies on the night, thanked Harris and Charles for showing initiative. "Twenty years ago in 1999 two enterprising young men...took a chance and decided that they wanted to save their communities from a fairly desperate or an emerging desperate situation and they offered football as an option."