PRESIDENT of the St. Lucia Football Association Lyndon Cooper has hailed the year 2015 as a memorable one for his organisation.
He made the comments while addressing the SLFA’s gala evening held at the Palm Haven Hotel in Rodney Bay last weekend.
Cooper extended congratulations to all the finalists and recipients of this year’s SLFA Sports Awards. The Association has been celebrating and recognizing sporting endeavours over the past years. In view of their recent achievements, the SLFA executive has included the SLFA Awards as a staple..
Cooper said: “The SLFA prides itself on the performance of the mandate given to it by FIFA and its member leagues. Our ultimate goal is to take football, the beautiful game, to higher heights. In doing so, we have forged partnerships with a number of agencies, government departments, and sponsors.”
Cooper said 2015 was a very memorable one for the SLFA, adding: “Our youth footballers performed incredibly at many of their international engagements – both at the CFU and at the CONCAF level. Our Under-17 team did well, when they were at least five games away from the Under-17 FIFA World Cup, which equates to a major milestone in the development and the future of football in this country. Most importantly, they did set out to challenge themselves and collectively obtain first and best performances”.
He added: “You have all made Saint Lucia and Saint Lucia Football Association proud. The team of 2014 and 2015 has shown us once again that we can move beyond the boundaries of Caribbean football”.
Cooper noted that some of the island’s elite footballers have already secured scholarships and others have received assistance from the government in the pursuit of their dream. The SLFA prided itself as an institution which afforded its members the opportunity to excel holistically, Cooper said.
He lamented the recent passing of Radio St Lucia’s Sportscaster Brian McDonald and spoke of his contribution to the development of sports, football in particular. He announced that the SLFA has introduced a new category of awards and this is going to be the “Brian McDonald Journalism Award”.
The recent establishment of a football structure throughout this country bore testimony to the association’s inclusiveness, Cooper said, explaining that this had eventually created new found excitement and belief in the organization as one Saint Lucia football family.