'A touching moment'

• Halliman moved by gesture of '89 Wolmer's crew

Glenroy Sinclair, Assignment Coordinator

With tears welling up in his eyes, the element of surprise swept coach Lebert Halliman with emotion, while being recognised for his outstanding contribution to football by some of his former Manning Cup and Minor League players.

"We thank you for being an instrumental force in our development, both as players and men. We appreciate your dedication and commitment to us as coach and mentor. To you, we will be forever grateful," read the words on the plaque awarded to him by a group of Wolmerians he coached 23 years ago.

The surprise party took place recently in Fort Lauderdale, United States, at the home of Winston O'Connor, who captained the undefeated Wolmers' Manning Cup team in 1989.

That team included the likes of Steve 'Bubbler G' Garwood, Jason Taylor, Corey Bennett, Carlo Redwood, Lissant Mitchell, Garfield Dyke and Shemiah Hohn, some of whom later represented Jamaica at junior level.

Touching moment

"It was a touching moment for me, because I didn't know that I had impacted their lives so much as youngsters," said Halliman, who has coached Garvey Maceo in the rural daCosta Cup and Calabar High, Excelsior High, Kington Technical High School (KTHS), St Andrew Technical High School (STATHS), Wolmer's Boys', and now Hydel High, in the Manning Cup competition.

Garvey Maceo marked his first schoolboy coaching assignment in 1984 when the school advanced to the semi-finals, but lost to Cornwall College.

Halliman won Manning Cup titles with STATHS in a lopsided win over Excelsior in 1987, for the Bumper Hall school's only Manning success.

Halliman had actually chalked up a remarkable record at STATHS as, during the three years he coached the team, from 1985-87, the school only lost one match.

He then led Excelsior to multiple championship successes in 2003 and 2004.

He missed out on a third title with Excelsior in 2006, when they lost the Manning Cup final to Calabar High.

The 1989 Wolmer's team that honoured him in Florida, finished third, missing out on a place in the final by virtue of goal difference, as the semi-finals were contested on a group basis.

A year earlier, he suffered a similar fate with Wolmer's as the team, with many of the same players, who also made it to the semis.

He also coached the KTHS team that won the Walker Cup KO crown at the turn of the '80s, but was later disqualified.

With a cake in the midst and over 30 former players gathered, Halliman at first thought he had been invited all the way from Jamaica to a birthday party and a players/coach reunion. So when they revealed that the party was being held in his honour, the veteran coach was swept with emotion.

No-nonsense coach

Affectionately called 'Ziggyman' by his peers, Halliman, who is known as a no-nonsense coach, is regarded as a firm disciplinarian and noted for his tough and strategic method of coaching.

"I am happy with the role that I played in their lives. At the function, they even reminisced on how I used to rough them up as young players, but commented that it later helped them when they migrated overseas to ply their trade," said Halliman.

Last year, a similar honour was bestowed on Halliman by his former Garvey Maceo charges. The function was also held in Florida.

While the lanky coach has no idea when he intends to hang up his training gear, Halliman's aim, this year, is to create history with Hydel in the Corporate Area competition.

"I think we have a good chance of advancing to the next round (Manning Cup) and to qualify for the Walker Cup competition for the first time. Next year, I will be going back to Excelsior," stated Halliman of his alma mater.