Two Bajan coaches to participate in Argentine-Caribbean Youth Football initiative

The Barbados Football Association (BFA) has confirmed that two Barbadian coaches will participate in the Argentine-Caribbean Youth Football: Training of Trainers Programme, an initiative aimed at advancing youth football development in the Caribbean.

Marlon Harte, assistant coach of the National Senior Men’s team and Kerry Trotman, a senior coach at Technique F.C Harte who coaches at Combermere School and previously led the National Under-15 Boys Team, have experience in youth development. Both coaches hold Concacaf B-License Coaching Certifications and are expected to make valuable contributions to the programme. 

The initiative, facilitated by EDLP, will take place in two phases. The first phase includes an eight-week virtual theoretical course focusing on coaching methodologies and sports psychology, scheduled for February to March 2025. The second phase involves a five-day football clinic at the UWI/JFF Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence in Jamaica in April 2025. 

BFA President and CFU President Randy Harris, who attended the programme’s launch in Jamaica, highlighted the importance of such partnerships in developing football in the region.  “This initiative will help to improve coaching capacity and use football as a tool for youth development and social inclusion,” Harris said. “Working with Argentina, currently FIFA’s top-ranked men’s football team, provides an opportunity to learn from a country with a strong football tradition.”  The President added that the programme will support both technical and social development goals, creating opportunities for coaches and young players while strengthening communities through football. 

It serves as a collaboration between Argentina’s Estudiantes de La Plata Football Club (EDLP), the Caribbean Football Union (CFU), the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), the Argentine Fund for International Cooperation (FO.AR), and the Organization of American States (OAS). It aims to improve coaching standards while fostering youth development and community engagement through football. 

The other countries participating in the Argentine-Caribbean Youth Football: Training of Trainers Programme include Antigua and Barbuda, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.

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