Should Verron Haynes have been our Sportsman of the Year for 2006?

Well, if Stephen Ames, self-proclaimed "Trini to de bone" but holder of Canadian citizenship, could get the nod that year for his triumph at golf's unofficial fourth Major, the Players Championship, then it's reasonable to assume that Haynes, born and partly bred here, should have been in consideration as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers team that emerged champions of America's National Football League six years ago.

Before the Ames clan and the wider golfing fraternity start to get agitated for yet another strident defence of their man, I'm just being provocative.

First of all, Haynes, the son of former national and Malvern footballer Ulric "Buggy" Haynes, was almost a nonentity in Super Bowl XL (that's 40 for those who have lost touch with their Roman numerals). The back-up running back only features in the statistical record of the game for a single play, carrying the pointy ball forward just two yards. End of story. Still, he has a Super Bowl ring.

Secondly, and more to the point, there is no recognised national association here for American football, so even if he had rushed for three touchdowns and been named Most Valuable Player to cap off a record-breaking season with the Steelers, young "Buggy" would have remained ineligible for consideration.

It's something to think about, though. What would happen, for example, if some flag-waving diehard Trini emerges as a superstar in downhill skiing? Okay, we all know it's highly unlikely, but would it be okay to just ignore victory after victory on the World Cup circuit on the basis that such outstanding world-class performances cannot be considered unless the sport is officially represented and recognised in Trinidad and Tobago?

That's just one of the hypothetical situations which came to mind over the last couple of days following remarks by veteran sports broadcaster and long-serving member of the First Citizens Sports Foundation, Dave Lamy, during last Friday's Sporting Edition on TV6.

Dave, who has served on the Foundation's board for more than 35 years now, succeeding the legendary Raffie Knowles after his passing in 1975, expressed a measure of concern about the drift from "traditional" sports and the challenges faced by board members in assessing the relative worth of a wide range of sporting performances.

By the way, let me state before going any further that what Dave, Sports Foundation chairman Dr Keith Clifford, Hall of Fame chairperson Maria Nunes (Sportswoman of the Year 1979) and all the other dedicated members of the Foundation do by way of service to sport in Trinidad and Tobago cannot be underestimated.

In a society that seems allergic to history or any sort of statistical record, they are fighting a noble–and thankless–battle in seeking to ensure that the tremendous achievements of our sportsmen and women over the many years are not completely forgotten.

In the midst of this awards period, with the Youth Awards held last Friday evening and the main event coming up Wednesday at Queen's Hall, complemented by the release of former national athlete Basil Ince's book "Olympians", celebrating our Olympic representatives over the past 64 years, it is important to understand that such appreciation of our sporting achievers is more the exception than the rule.

That being said, it might be necessary in the not too distant future for decision-makers to further broaden their horizons well beyond the supposedly traditional boundaries. In any event, what we usually consider to be our thing–football, cricket, athletics, etc–were all introduced by the former colonial powers.

If the Spanish weren't asleep when the British sailed in to claim Trinidad in 1797, we might be playing jai alai instead of squash. If the French had been able to hold on to this piece of earth, those old fellas in Woodford Square would be playing boules instead of draughts.

So what's so wrong if a sport like baseball, or American football, or Australian rules football catches on here someday? Before we even consider the big money of television rights and multi-million-dollar players' contracts, sport is essentially about competition, participation and, very importantly, enjoyment.

Over the weekend, in browsing through a photo album and newspaper clippings highlighting the achievements of the late Randolph Bally, the former football goalkeeper and cricketer who starred for St Mary's College, Malvern and Aranjuez, I noticed on the reverse of one of the clippings a story in which a diplomat from one of our Latin American neighbours, a Senor J. Peralta, was seeking to introduce baseball and softball to this country.

That was more than 45 years ago, and despite the goodly gentleman's efforts and the more recent advocacy of Michael Legerton (Protector in the kaiso world) in the same area, baseball has no impact on the national consciousness. However, that should be no deterrent to those who love the sport. There may never be a proper league or a standard of play worth talking about, but once there's camaraderie and enjoyment in the midst of healthy competition, why should it matter what anyone else thinks?

Who knows, maybe one day the New York Yankees' star pitcher will be a Trini, or a son of the soil will be surpassing Tom Brady's standards as quarterback of the New England Patriots. As unlikely as those prospects may appear now, in sport–any sport–almost anything is possible.

It will be more work for the Sports Foundation, but they can handle it.

fazeer2001@hotmail.com