Young footballer gaining success against the odds

Ryon Jones, Gleaner Writer

Nineteen year-old Jamaica College student, Necas Collins, had a very challenging start to life and has been fighting his way through ever since. He has, however, found refuge in hard work and football.

His football talent first came to light at Clan Carthy Primary but his dream of leaving a mark at the school in his final year did not materialise as, at age 11, he went on vacation in Curaçao to be with his mother and did not return until four years later.

"I wanted to travel but not to stay. I was doing very well in football at Clan Carthy Primary and it was my final year, so I wanted to leave on a high but didn't get the chance.

"Schools over there provide you with everything; all you have to do is get into the school so she thought it was much cheaper. She was also married over there so she decided she would make me live there with her," he explained.

He, however, found it hard to adjust to his new school and was placed in the third grade despite being a fifth-grade student when leaving Jamaica.

New environment

Collins said: "Over there, they speak Papiamento, Dutch, Spanish and many different local languages. English wasn't one of the main languages, so for a youngster at my age living over there I couldn't communicate with anyone. I felt isolated in a sense but after a while I adapted to the system."

He gradually improved and was among the most outstanding students in the school by the time he reached the fifth grade. He was, however, soon on the move again. Just before time to sit his examinations his mother's husband died and her marriage permit expired.

"My mother was not prepared to leave so when we came out here we didn't really have anything to survive on or anywhere to go, but the same aunt and uncle I was staying with in Seaview, before the Curaçao trip, took us in again."

His search for a school started again, and after being rebuffed by several his ability to play football caught the attention of an elderly man in his community, who took him to Tivoli High. The teachers initially refused him entry as the registration date had long past. They were, however, impressed by the fact that he could speak five different languages and decided to give him a chance.

"So the reason why I got into school was because of the languages I spoke and to play football."

He would find it hard to cope as, after being underexposed to the English language for so long, he could not understand most of what was being taught, to the point where the school threatened to put him in a special programme or have him leave.

"The only subject I could do well was Spanish. I have never failed a Spanish exam but everything else revolved around English, so if I could not speak English I just could do the rest of subjects," Collins pointed out.

In addition to his academic struggles he was also representing the school in football at the senior level.

Challenge

Collins said: "As I entered Tivoli (High) in ninth grade I started playing Manning Cup, I was the only ninth-grade player on the team. It was complicated for a student who can't speak English and not really doing anything in school, but at the same time have to be balancing football because I had to be playing on the Colts, Manning Cup and community teams. So I did not get the chance to put the 100 per cent in my book work."

He did not allow the situation to overwhelm him but, instead, invested a lot of time in his studies and soon started doing better. He eventually left Tivoli High with 10 CXC subjects: two (3s), six (2s) and two (1s); including a two in English and three in mathematics. This September he will be going into his second year at Jamaica College (JC) sixth form, where he is purusing the arts with the hope of becoming a lawyer.

JC is also where he has experienced his most rewarding football experiences to date, as he was part of their historic Walker Cup winning team.

"I only got two to three weeks to fit in with the team before the competition, and as I went in I was one of the starting players on that team," said Collins. "I scored two goals on my debut against Penwood High, and every match after that I kept scoring a goal until the fifth match, I suffered a knee injury and had to sit out a good amount of the second round," he added.

He ended the season with six goals from his right midfield position, including the third goal in JC's 3-2 win over Bridgeport in the semi-finals of the Walker Cup.