Old Harbour United dreams again

Almost two decades later a new Old Harbour United has emerged, with new faces behind the mission of rising to the top of the football pyramid in Jamaica.

Spearheading this dream of a renaissance if you want to call it that is Jabarie Baker, who operates in the dual role of president and chairman. Supporting Baker is Carlos Stewart, the club secretary, while on and off field matters are co-ordinated by Martin Mills, the team manager, and coaches Bill Martin and Jermaine Douglas.

Baker is the chief financier of the club and was quick to make it clear that there are no link between the defunct Old Harbour United Football Club that folded after the 2004/05 season and the current organisation he now leads.

“It’s a totally new thing,” Baker clarified in an interview with Old Harbour News. “Why I really called it Old Harbour is because Old Harbour is the name of the community and we just said we are going to work with the name Old Harbour United.

“But it’s a new thing. I don’t want it to be said that we are trying to revive an old club. No. it’s not that.”

A former player himself who represented his country at the youth level, Baker said it was always a dream of his to one day own a football club and ultimately transformed it into one of the best on the island both in terms of structure and winning silverwares.

“I didn’t get to make it as a professional as I stopped playing due to circumstances. My dream was then to be a coach or own a team, so that was my passion,” said the Old Harbour Bay native.

They have entered into the St Catherine Division One football competition, one of 32 teams vying for promotion to the Major League. But like any new adventure, there are many ups and downs navigating the course to success.

Baker resides primarily overseas and relies heavily on others to keep the mechanism of the club oiled and running efficiently.

Speaking from the United States, he said: “It takes a lot of money, a lot of time, a lot of effort. So I have to be working overtime to make sure people are doing their job down there, but we keep pushing as a group.”

Head coach Martin is intrigued by the personnel involved in the project and shares the same vision of wanting to see Old Harbour being represented in football like back in the days when he was a player and young coach.

Martin, better known as ‘Big Johnny’ comes with a wealth of experience. He has coached at every level and is famous for building teams from scratch and claiming success along the way. He was at the helm when Old Harbour High won the 2002 Ben Francis Cup KO title, the biggest sporting achievement to date at the school. And arguably his biggest accomplishment was steering Arlington FC to promotion to the National Premier League in 2006.

Convincing Martin to come aboard will certainly be seen as an astute move and a major component of this puzzle being assembled by Baker.

Martin has drafted for Jermaine Douglas to be his deputy, the man who led Central High School to the 2022 daCosta Cup final. In Douglas and other members of the coaching staff, Martin believes they can make a good impression in their first season with promotion their main objective.

“I have been involved in coaching since 1974 and I’m passed 60 now,” said Martin. “I feel like we can do some things.”

One of the challenges getting his charges ready is the availability of players to train and whenever matches are scheduled in midweek. This is so because most of the players work full-time as well, something the club hope to change in the near future. There is enough evidence that they are a very competitive bunch after taking seven points from a maximum of 12, winning two, drawing one and a defeat after four games. That loss was against DB Basovak FC and was a Wednesday fixture, noted Martin in which only 13 players were available. 

To get them through this season the club has been busy signing new players in the January transfer window. Experience premier league campaigners Andre Dyce, Kadeem Davis, Larone Russell, Marvin Mills and Davian Alves have all joined the squad and are expected to take the team forward.

“With the coaching staff that we have and the group of players we now have, I feel that we can win the league,” said Martin.

Douglas, a former referee and coach with close to two decades experience, is quite familiar with some of the players in the squad having coached them at youth level in high school. He told Old Harbour News that he was excited to come on board based on the ideas of the club to “progress to the highest level in the country”.

“The talent has always been around in the Old Harbour area,” he said. “I think other factors have contributed to a team not making it to the highest level so far. If we can get the other things right, like the discipline, commitment and the correct sponsorship and structure, we can make it.”

“Based on the talent, if we get the other things right around it to support the talent, I think we can go all the way,” added Douglas who was the man in charge of Old Harbour Bay FC during the 2017 JFF Super League season.

It’s the first time he and Martin have teamed up and the relationship is one of admiration and mutual respect so far, he noted.

“We have been doing good,” Douglas said. “We co-ordinate, we communicate and I have been allowed to implement my ideas.”

Dyce, 33, is a talented native from Old Harbour and knows what it means to represent the community, having done so for Bodles FC before representing Portmore United, Arnett Gardens FC and Dunbeholden FC in the premiership.

He’s expected to captain the team for the remainder of the season and feels excited at the prospect of creating history with the club.

“This project excites me because all my years I have been leaving Old Harbour and going to a different club,” said the centre back, who has been called to the national senior squad on a few occasions but never made the final cut. “I always want to have a premier league team from Old Harbour, so with this project I just tell myself that I’m going to be here and bring it as far as possible.”

“Coming from the premier league to division one is to bring all my experience to the club and take them to the highest level,” added Dyce who has had 10 seasons playing in the nation’s top flight.

“I’m very encouraged with the setup. I wouldn’t say it’s like a D1 setup because with the coaching staff and the players who are here, nothing is missing from the highest level to tell you the truth.

“The other players have responded well to me, plus there are other players who have premier league experience but with the young players who have no experience they have responded well.

“With the vision of the club, all of us have the same belief. From the young to the old have the same belief; and we know we can win but we just have to take it one at a time.

“I think the discipline and the dedication will be the two most important things to succeed and advance to the next league.”

Whether or not targets set for this season are met, Baker is adamant that they are in it together for the long journey ahead.

“My plan is to start an academy,” he said. “So it’s not just a football club but a football academy where we can start from under-13 or whatever the parish (football association) allows.

“That’s what I’m really interested in because there are so many opportunities for younger players in football right now.”

At the moment there’s lot of behind-the-scenes work being carried out by Baker and the team, the result of which will manifest for all too see not too long from now. The prospect of a return of football derby days in Old Harbour is also something many will anticipate, with Old Harbour Bay FC an established competitor in the Super League at this moment.

Its early days yet, however, but one thing is certain is that football is about to get big in Old Harbour.