The aforementioned quote from electrical engineer-turned-financial-expert and author Manoj Arora emphasises the importance of perspective and vision, suggesting that one’s humble beginnings should not overshadow their potential and ambitions.
Among local football clubs, Dandy Town stands as the epitome of Arora’s concept.
Once a ragged, nondescript collection of neighbourhood youth with a passion for football, hosting their games on the unforgiving asphalt playground at Northlands School, today the Hornets stand as a proud member of the elite.
New Year’s Day witnessed the St John’s Road institution capture a sixth Friendship Trophy championship against 13-time winners North Village, their cross-town rivals.
The present is a far cry from the late 1960s and early 70s, when the boys of Mount Hill only infrequently engaged their lower dwelling St John’s counterparts during annual Good Friday festivities, which had as a highlight the ‘Up de Hill versus Down de Hill’ derby, where the prospect of holding bragging rights temporarily superceded friendship.
Said Wellman of the rivalry: “Bragging rights was a serious matter, and it was all-out war when it came down to these games.
“It might have been a so-called ‘friendly’, but nobody wanted to lose and have to wait a whole year for another shot at the title, so things got rough.
“The matches featured unlimited substitutions because you would have more than 30 players involved, all wanting to participate … all wanting to win.”
Combining talent from both sects, Mount Hill United formally registered a team in the Bermuda Football Union [BFU] Second Division in 1966 and were promptly promoted after amassing a 13-2-3 [won-draw-loss] record during the 1966-67 season.
However, success was short-lived as MHU struggled among top-flight competition, being relegated after one season and promptly disbanding prior to the 1968-69 season.
Great promise having deceived dissipation had a significant effect upon many of the young area players, who had been playing among the junior ranks with PHC while harbouringambitions of progress toward the senior level with either Zebras or MHU.
When PHC moved operations to Warwick soon after the MHU collapse, the commute to training became prohibitive for many of the Pembroke-based youngsters, hastening the need for another option .
In and attempt to rectify the situation an area male collective including the likes of Gary Wellman, Gregory Telford, Colin Washington, Clyde Canon, Gary Lynch, Sandy Simons, Albert [Joe] Place, Richard [Buck] King, Larry Holder, Derek Musson, Colin Fubler and a few others decided to take another stab at organised football, joining the Bermuda Football Association.
In 1973, with key assistance from Bermuda Football Association administrator Eugene Pearman the group were guided through the registration requirements. These essential fields mandated having a quantified membership, funding to cover the BFA’s registration fee and a brand name.
Able to meet both the membership and funding requirements, the only missing element was a name, something the group were at pains to settle upon.
And while there is yet debate as to how the group arrived at ‘Dandy Town’ as their username, Wellman offered a fascinating tale regarding the process.
“We had a group of young guys with a passion for the game, who just wanted to ‘come out with a football team,” explained Wellman, the club’s first secretary.
“At the time, three things were required by the BFA in order to register a team to play football in Bermuda.
“Needed were 21 members, the registration fee and a name for the team.
“We had the 21 names. We had the registration fee. But we didn’t have a name for the team, and it was getting down to crunch time.
“The BFA official with responsibility for accepting registrations was Eugene Pearman, who was a neighbour of mine. And he saw me a few days before the registration deadline, and he reminded me that we needed to submit a name for the team.
“I immediately began a search for co-founder Albert [Joe] Place and found him hanging out at Richard [Buck] King’s place.
“As we tried to figure out how we could come up with a name, I remembered a time while I was at Casemates Prison, reading an article in Ebony Magazine.
“The story I had read focused on The Commodores and how they had faced a similar dilemma, where they wanted to bring out this group, but didn’t have a name for it.
“One of the original members suggested someone grab a dictionary, open it at random and stick a finger on the page, and that’s what they did.
“The guy’s finger landed on commode, which was torture, and the guy said, ‘We can’t call ourselves The Commodes’.
“The very next word in the dictionary they had was Commodores, so that’s how The Commodores got their name.
“I asked Joe to get a dictionary, he opened it, and I stuck my finger there, and it landed on ‘Dandy’.
“The definition that that dictionary gave was, ‘Everything’s going to be okay; Just fine and dandy’.
“We took it as an omen, and Dandy became the first part of our brand.
“How we came to add ‘Town’ was as a result of Joe having recently returned from Jamaica, where he had gone to watch a football game involving a team named ‘Boys Town of Jamaica’.
“He had been truly impressed by the team, and during an earlier meeting, he said that regardless of whatever name we came up with, it had to have ‘Town’ in it.
“Some people have questioned this scenario, but I tell you, ‘If anybody says different … they don’t know what they’re talking about’.”
Officially instituted, Dandy Town needed a place to play. The tarmac at Northlands School was dangerously inadequate as a training facility and unacceptable as a match day venue.
The Box next to the old Berkeley Institute – the site of Belco’s main power plant, once a hotbed of activity – had long fallen into disuse; hence, St John’s Field, which was being leased to Western Stars Sports Club, was successfully pursued as a home base for the fledgling organisation.
Unlike that which had occurred with many stand-alone cricket institutions, the established WSSC bonded easily with their football counterparts, despite the prospect of their lush grounds being exposed to the harsh demands of football.
Familiarity bred contentment, with the arrival of the ‘big ball’ stimulating increased interest and year-round community participation.
Town’s first official match took place at St John’s Field against another young club, Boulevard, in only their second year of competition, with the home side earning a 1-0 victory. The match was, however, marked by an unfortunate incident, as two players had to be taken to the hospital due to injury.
Despite the initial positive result, wins would not come in plentiful enough measure to rise above mediocrity, as they toiled for several years within the BFA Second Division, even being relegated to the Third Division, a short-lived addition.
With eyes set upon overall growth, Town commenced a youth programme, which would ultimately reap dividends.
“The youth programme was initiated by then coach Luther Wilkin, who had a team called ‘The Busby Babies’,” explained Willis Dill, a former Dandy Town president. “And from there started what was termed ‘The Youth Explosion’.
“I got involved later on after Wayne [Jim] Baxter had joined as a coach and was in charge of the Bantam team.
“He had to go away, and I was asked to fill in. So I took over his team and was coaching them for two weeks, and when he came back, the players said that they would rather me coach them than him, which was funny.”
Nevertheless, with Wilkin having installed the wick, Baxter lit the fuse, causing a massive eruption among the junior ranks, where Town became prime challengers to the traditional powers while also feeding the national youth teams.
Part of the lure was the intricate, free flowing, attractive playing style instituted by Baxter, which contrasted those sides stuck in more traditional formations that catered direct, few frills methodology.
The social fabric at the club also appealed to youngsters, with Town providing a more contemporary culture that included the then ‘Barn’ regularly hosting reggae parties and other activities specifically for the younger crowd.
Programme products including brothers Kent, Kirk and Kris Martin became household names, as well did Walter Musson, Paul [Rip] Cann, Troy [Tortoise] Durham, Wayne Campbell, Carlos Smith and Wylie Rudo.
As talented youth came of age and filtered into the senior team, Dandy Town rose from the depths under the guidance of Roger [Rocko] Leverock, being promoted in consecutive seasons from the Third Division to Second, before arriving at what was the then First Division – later renamed Premier Division – in 1981.
Current Dandy Town president Devarr Boyles recalled having developed an affinity for the way Town played in comparison to mainstays PHC and Somerset, daring to be different.
A key element among the Wolves youth programme, Boyles was coaxed into joining Dandy Town by mates Carlos Smith and Pernell Douglas, with all soon to feature during an initial rise to greatness.
“I used to just tell people that we didn’t have the best team, but we had decent players, and we were competitive,” explained Boyles. “But once everybody arrived at the senior team, then that’s when you really saw what could be done.
“My heroes were the Kurts, the Kris’, the Walters, all those guys. They were much older than I, but some of the things they were doing excited me and the players of my generation.
“So we would go to the games, and we’d be watching all the top teams like Somerset and PHC, and we were looking at them saying, ‘Really, all they do is run fast, they don’t really play with the ball. ‘
“We kept asking ourselves why we could never beat them. And we’d be on the sidelines talking about that for hours.”
The answer to Boyles’ and his teammates’ question came in the form of Bermuda and PHC star player and coaching genius Danvers Seymour Sr, who Baxter brought in to shepherd Town through the minefield of top-flite football.
“We were still maturing, but I think the biggest person in our history, who really cemented us, was Danvers Seymour,” said Boyles. “He was instrumental in putting us on a firm footing.
“I think part of it was his reputation as a disciplinarian. He was a school teacher, so he was very organised and a great communicator.”
As a former teammate of Seymour at PHC, Baxter possessed first-hand knowledge of his brilliance in strategy, motivation and planned execution. A master innovator in his own right, Baxter proved the ideal complement to Seymour.
Still, early returns were ignominious for upstarts striving for success in a land of footballing giants. Town lost their first five matches, precipitating a switch to a five-man defence, with Seymour inserted into its heart as libero, similar to the role West German great Franz Beckenbauer successfully performed while captaining the 1974 FIFA World Cup champions.
“The year we got promoted, I was still partially involved with the coaching aspect,” said Baxter. “But I recognised that a little more experience in terms of leadership was needed to be able to compete in the top division.
“Danny had great knowledge of the game and vast experience.
“We lost, we lost our first five games by the odd goal. Five straight, so we had zero points after five games. Danny decided to make changes, bringing into the team players with more experience.
“We drew our sixth game against Devonshire Colts. Right from there, we went on a run where we didn’t lose until the last game of the season, and by then, we were already safe as far as relegation was concerned.
“From 18 games, we ended up with 18 points. Our record was six wins, six draws and six losses.”
Yet it was only a matter of time before the Hornets truly started buzzing, winning the FA Cup via replay over PHC in 1987.
The following year, they captured both the league title and the Martonmere Cup.
In the years since Town has established themselves as the fourth most successful club, winning nine league championships, five FA Cup titles and six Friendship Trophy triumphs.
Yet, for all the success Baxter asserts, Town cannot be considered elite, as they have never achieved the ‘Triple Crown’, the holy grail collection of league, FA Cup and Friendship Trophy in the same season.
“I’m not totally excited yet because we’ve never won the triple crown, so we can’t be called elite,” explained Baxter. “The Friendship has always been the one that has eluded us.
“We won it last year, and then we imploded. So this year we’ve won it again, and so far we are in a good position.
“Things do look different from last year. I would have to say that much.
“The attitude of players looks different, and as long as they stay humble and just do what they have to do, we’ll have a solid chance.”
Currently sitting first in the league, Town face a critical battle to maintain pole position tonight when they face off against third placed Devonshire Colts, who trail the leaders by a single point, while having played a game less.
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