CAPTAIN MORGAN Arnett midfielder relishing leadership role
If there is one player in the Red Stripe Premier League who does not shy away from the limelight or back down from a challenge, it is Arnett Gardens Football Club captain Marvin Morgan. Morgan is arguably one of the most talented attackers on show in the nation’s top flight and never lacks the confidence required to back himself on the field, especially in the final third.
This season, however, is different for Morgan in a special way as he has been chosen to lead his team this season not only as their star player, but as club captain. It is a role Morgan is revelling in.
“Being captain of Arnett Gardens means a lot to me. Expectations of me are always high, being that I am a senior player in the squad and I am also playing for the national team. The coach has selected me to lead, and leading is what I like doing,” Morgan said about being named club captain.
The Reggae Boyz attacker’s importance to his team is noticed by not only those within his team and club, but also by opposition teams as he seems to always have a target on his back, for which the forward said he has the ‘battle scars’ to prove.
“Well, it is quite obvious, there is not a single game that I have played that I have not left the field with some sort of knock or injury. Against Dunbeholden, my hand was hurt really badly, but that didn’t stop me from turning up against Mount Pleasant. My hand was basically in a plaster. Against Montego Bay United, it was similarly tough, but I am a captain and a warrior, so I have to come out and fight each day and each game.” Morgan said.
Morgan said that he recognises that he has been a target for the opposition teams and that he has no intention of backing down from the challenges but intends to be smarter with his game.
“I am targeted, not only from the Mount Pleasant game, but previous games as well. It hinders my game somewhat, my freeflowing football and dribbling. Now I have to mix it up a bit by passing and moving off the ball more than dribbling. Everyone is coming at me, but I can deal with it,” the forward said.
One of the most important victories for him was the hard-fought win over Mount Pleasant in front of a full house at the Anthony Spaulding Sports Complex. The Arnett skipper said that such a result only served to motivate and strengthen his team’s morale.
Wearing the captain’s armband for his beloved club seems to have brought out something more and indeed something special from Marvin Morgan, and he is leading his team from the front with pride. There’s a new Captain Morgan in town – not Sir Henry from Port Royal, but, Marvin Morgan from Arnett.