SEOUL, South Korea — Like most Jamaicans, Errol Anthony Stevens was a happy man when the Reggae Boyz defeated the United States of America for the first time at the senior level on September 7, 2012, in a World Cup qualifier inside the National Stadium.

Yet, understandably, he was hurting deeply inside, for injury, the great leveller, had robbed him of the personal gratification of playing a key role in that historic achievement.

After all, he had been making significant strides in his fledgling international career, where he had managed five caps and was being given increased responsibility, so much so that, according to him, then Assistant Head Coach Alfredo Montesso had informed him that he was being looked at for a starting role in that game.

But leading up to the game he felt some discomfort in his right knee, and after further checks with team doctor Derrick McDowell, it was discovered that he had suffered a cartilage tear which required surgery.

“To be honest, just being in that team it was like my dream coming to, because I got the chance to play against Guyana, and I expressed myself in Montego Bay and I got a good feedback from everybody, and I played against Panama, and it was another consistent feedback, so it was just the thinking that this is my chance to finally get into the team and be somebody who is important to the team and the country,” explained Stevens, who now plies his trade in the Vietnamese League with Hai Phong.

“I remember sitting in the National Stadium when we beat the USA for the first time, and maybe I didn’t shed tears outside, but I was crying inside, honestly. I was happy for the victory, but just to know that I could have been a part of that and injury forced me to miss it,” he reflected, as though still in search of answers.

The 29-year-old has been given a second chance to prove his worth at the international level, and now the easy-going midfielder/striker believes he’s much more equipped to take on the challenge, not only from a physical and technical standpoint, but also from the general understanding of the game.

The knee injury and subsequent surgery on September 24, 2012 in St Ann’s ruled him out of action for the rest of year and well into the next, and he told the Jamaica Observer that it took him over five months to feel like himself again, and even more time to regain the confidence to exert real pressure on the injured knee.

And so, in July 2013, he went to Thailand and signed for the remainder of the season with Division One outfit Saraburi FC, where he played 13 games and scored six goals, operating as a striker, instead of his preferred attacking midfield position. His move to Thailand was aided in a significant way by former Reggae Boy Damion ‘Stew peas’ Stewart.

“In Jamaica, I play in midfield, but in Asia they tend to want strikers more than midfielders,” he explained, while adding that when he went to Thailand he had the mindset that he wasn’t going back to Jamaica, so if the club wanted him to play in defence, he would gladly do it just to be able to secure a professional contract.

So he played striker, he said, which was a change for him because he doesn’t like playing with his back to defenders, but rather to face his challengers.

“I played and did well and re-signed for another year and helped the team get promotion to the Premier League last year, but I got a better offer in Vietnam, so I moved there last November,” he said.

Married to a Russian he met in Thailand, and only recently welcoming a baby son to his family, Stevens, the former Arnett Gardens Premier League player, is enjoying his time in Asia.

“For me, life in Asia is good; it is cheap and it is a good living condition. Now I live in the city where I rent a home for me and my family.”

He’s also enjoying his time on the pitch as well. This season he has netted 15 goals in 28 games in a frontline partnership with former Harbour View player Andre Fagan.

And, like many before him, Stevens has added to voice to those championing the cause of good pitches as one of the tools to help improve the standard of the game in Jamaica.

“Football in Asia is more fast-paced than in Jamaica because they have better pitches, and I think bad pitches slow down the game a lot in Jamaica. We have the ability to play, but we don’t do so consistently at the high level and we can’t move the ball at that high pace, so when we do get on the good pitches it is always like a drawback. In Jamaica you can’t make certain one-two plays,” he asserted.

So having last represented Jamaica in a World Cup Qualifier against Antigua and Barbuda in 2012 in Antigua, Stevens was elated when he received the call up from the technical staff.

“When I got the call last week Tuesday, I was really excited, because to be honest, I have been working hard, maybe not in the eyes of the national programme, because probably they don’t see us playing as far as Asia, but I never closed the door on my international career. I was also surprised, and people would always ask me why I’m not with the team, but I told them it was just time, as I think my talent will do the rest,” he said.

Stevens met the team, including Head Coach Winfried Schaefer, shortly after the local-based contingent exited the arrival lounge at the Incheon International Airport of Saturday morning, and he explained that the German handler told him he had done some checking up on him on Youtube before, and that he “was showing me a midfield position he thinks I can play and today (Saturday)… I was training and he put me in a central midfield position, so we will see,” ended the powerful, yet tricky attacker.

And regarding Tuesday’s game, Stevens has no illusions about the task at hand.

— Ian Burnett