FA Head Pledges Support For Williams’ Family, Burial

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The late Rolston “Debu” Williams. (Photo courtesy ABFA)
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By Neto Baptiste

The Antigua and Barbuda Football Association (ABFA) stands ready and willing to assist in ensuring that the final arrangements for the sport’s technical director Rolston “Debu” Williams who died on Wednesday, are covered.

This is according to the FA’s president, former national striker Everton “Batow” Gonsalves, who told Observer media that he has been in contact with Williams’ family who are due to arrive in Antigua shortly.

“In fact, I am supposed to collect a document that is to assist his daughter to travel here as soon as possible. They haven’t decided on all of the details leading up to the funeral as yet, but they have indicated to me that as soon as they get here and they are settled in their minds what they want to do, they will be having discussions with the ABFA and I have indicated to them that we stand ready to assist in any way that we can,” he said.

Williams, who became the first local coach to occupy the football association’s top position in 2016, passed away two days after he was admitted to the country’s lone public hospital.

There was an outpouring from both the football fraternity and the members of the public following news of his passing early Wednesday at the Mount St Johns Medical Centre.

Gonsalves said Williams was more than an employee and a friend.

“Debu was not my blood relative, but we have been so close that I wonder if somewhere down the road we are not family. Every single thing that we thought was important for football we had agreement on it but the methodology and maybe some elements of it was disagreed and as you would be aware, he is a passionate advocate for what he believed in and so am I and so the discussions, the debates and the arguments that we have been having all these years even before he was appointed as technical director has been something that I would cherish for the balance of my life,” he said.

Williams would have served as head coach of the senior national football team back in 2004 and 2012 when he led the nation during the Caribbean Football Union’s (CFU) Caribbean Cup Championship. He also led Parham to back-to-back Premier Division titles in 2001/2 and 2002/3. Parham also won in 20010/11 and 2014/15 under his tutelage.

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