Georgetown Secondary takes action against its football players

The Georgetown Secondary School has taken action against members of the school’s football team who were involved in a fracas with the St Clair Dacon Secondary School on Tuesday, October 15, 2024 at the Chili Playing Field. In an interview with SEARCHLIGHT, manager of the Georgetown Secondary School’s football team, Cartwright Franklin, said players’ sanctions ranged from one and two match suspensions, to suspension for the remainder of the Inter-Secondary Schools Football Tournament that is slated to end in December, 2024.

He was, however, adamant that his charges did not start the melee.

The team official said things began to get heated and uncomfortable following an equalizer by the Georgetown Secondary School, following a successful penalty off the St. Clair Dacon Secondary School.

“The coaches became livid, and began to verbalise long-standing personal grievances with the referee, or more systematic issues about the organisers. Constant complaints were made about the decisions made on the pitch, and past events were evoked,” Franklin stated.

He said their opponents became “progressively irate, and their protests became riddled with expletives.”

Franklin added that in an attempt at bringing calm he and the senior physical education coach sought to “reason with the St. Clair Dacon coach” telling him that the verbal attack on the referee was unwarranted, but they got nowhere.

Franklin also said that soon afterwards “what transpired was never before seen in an inter-school secondary school football match.”

He alleged that one of the St. Clair Dacon Secondary coaches while on the field, belligerently confronted the referee about “perceived incompetence,” resulting in a red card being issued.

Franklin claimed that this further fuelled tensions and “the fourth official became a target of abuse…”.

He said following the issuing of the red card, the St. Clair Dacon Secondary School coach marched his entire entourage out of the technical area, thus halting the match.

A player’s mother was fingered for initiating the brawl, and video clips appeared to have been circulated on social media, but Franklin said none of these captured the start of the conflict.

“The Georgetown Secondary School maintains that we did not strike first. It is regrettable but obvious that there could have been only one outcome given the location of the event.”

There has been no word as yet from the Ministry of Education on the matter.