Colourful Henry could be back at JC
THE Inter-Secondary School Sports Asso-ciation (ISSA) may be forced to uphold an appeal and rescind a one-year ban against Jamaica College (JC) football coach Alfred Henry on technical grounds, the Observer has learnt.
Henry was banned from all ISSA-related activities by members of an ISSA Disciplinary Committee on November 30 last year after he verbally abused ISSA administrators and match officials during a 2-3 loss against Wolmer’s Boys in a Manning Cup match.
The veteran coach and trained teacher described competition organisers as “incompetent” and labelled referees as “nincompoops”.
The Disciplinary Commit-tee comprising ISSA president and Wolmer’s principal Dr Walton Small, headmaster of Tarrant High Albert Corcho, and ISSA’s Competitions Co-ordinator George Forbes found Henry guilty of misconduct.
The JC coach, however, acquired the services of law firm Hylton & Hylton to appeal the ban.
The appeal was lodged on the basis that “the sanction imposed is unreasonably harsh and excessive and is not justified by the evidence and surrounding circum-stances; that the disciplinary committee was not properly constituted and both the hearing and the decision were void, and that Henry was denied the right of legal representation”.
However, Observer sources say ISSA’s lawyers had examined the document and decided an appeal could go in Henry’s favour as the association had breached its own rules in allowing Forbes to vote on the matter.
According to Clause 8 (i)(vi) of the Competitions Rules and Regulations, the committee shall “have at least three principals or vice-principals on the committee for any enquiry”.
While Forbes, in his capacity, would have been required to be at the meeting, he is neither a school principal nor a vice-principal.
Henry’s appeal is not likely to be heard until after the Boys’ and Girls’ Athletic Championships which ends on March 27.
ISSA has the option of employing either an appeals body comprising its executive members, minus those involved in the original hearing, or an appeals board of non-ISSA members.
Observer sources say ISSA had chosen the second option. If the ruling is overturned, ISSA would have no further recourse.