Barrett was moved to tears - ... when son followed in his footsteps to represent Jamaica

Although he played on football’s greatest stage, one of Warren Barrett Sr’s favourite sporting moments happened long after he had hung up his boots.

The moment occurred when his son, Warren Barrett Jr, earned a spot on Jamaica’s Carifta team in 2013 as a shot putter and discus thrower.

Barrett Sr, who captained Jamaica’s team at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, said that he was moved to tears because what he had done to win his first cap for the Reggae Boyz in March of 1990 ‘work hard’, his son made the same sacrifice to don the black, green and gold in athletics.

“I used to tell him that there was no better feeling than to be inside of a stadium and hear the national anthem being played in front of thousands of people,” Barrett Sr said. “So, that Sunday morning when a Cornwall College old boy posted in our social media group that my son had made the Carifta team, it was joyous moment not only for me but for the entire family, my wife Suzette and his two sisters. We were beaming and I cried.”

He continued: “I always tell people that he has the same passion for his sport as I have for football, and when he was chosen to represent the country, it reminded me of when I made my debut for Jamaica.”

Barrett Jr made attempts to become a goalkeeper like his father, and even made the Cornwall College Under-16 football team in that position, but his talent as a thrower was too immense and he was pulled from the team because of fear that he might pick up an injury.

“He really worked his socks off. I remember sometimes he would be alone at Cornwall (College) working and people would see me in the streets as say, ‘Mr Barrett, I’m not surprised that your son is doing so well, sometimes I would pass him up by the school and is him and God alone up there working,” Barrett Sr recounted.

Like he did in 1998 in France, the now 49-year-old is hoping that his son can also make it to the pinnacle of his sport.

“I would love to see him at the Olympic Games or even the World Championships, and we are working towards it,” Barrett Sr said. “He was working hard during the break due to the coronavirus, but he is back at UWI (University of the West Indies) doing his final exams.”