Jake Rennie is one of the many successful footballers rising from the Republic Bank RightStart Football Cup. In 2003 Rennie joined the tournament during his stint as a student at the Saint Andrews Anglican Secondary School, and from there the game of football became a part of him.

Rennie who is one of Grenada’s highly accomplished footballers, who hails from Paradise Saint Andrew. With his great striking abilities, Rennie has proven to be a game changer both regionally and internationally and continues to shine locally as the Coach and Captain of one of the top football clubs in Grenada, Paradise FC team, where he plays in midfield.

The experienced coach spoke of his stint at the Saint Andrews Anglican School under the helm of the Republic Bank RightStart and described the period as some of his best times. “Although I have met many difficulties in beating the rock of Gibraltar which was Schaper (Football club). I never won a tournament because of them. They had a national under 20 team which was very good, but this never kept me back from striving. Every year I pushed myself harder. I got up every morning, I trained. Thanks to the Republic RightStart Cup for helping me find my way through.”

 The coach expressed that during the tournament, his previous experiences helped him to score the most goals on three consecutive occasions, placing him as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) during this time and also gaining him a scholarship to Cuba.

During his time in Cuba Rennie did exceedingly well, bringing the Cubanos as far as reaching the finals after 15 years. He stated proudly “I played for Havana which never entered the finals in 15 years until I got there. During that time, I got an invitation to go Germany and from there started playing for Bonner SC where I won the competition and scored 13 goals. The exposure from the RightStart lead to me representing my country at midlevel, national under 16, under 20 and also in the Windward Island School Games. I also participated in the GFA Premier League with team Paradise where I am the Head coach. My achievement ranges from being a national player to an international player. When I came back in 2012, I started working at the Grenada Christian Academy, and during my first season as coach there I won the Republic Bank U15 championship.”

Rennie urges new players to grab the opportunity that the Republic Bank RightStart Cup offers. “It is a stepping stone in helping you to become a professional football player

The opportunity now is much greater than our time, and if I can make it, I know you all can make it. I advised the players who are interested in playing soccer at a professional level to be disciplined. I know there are a lot of distractions, especially in drinking and smoking, so you need to stay focus if you want to be that player…Train hard and most of all study hard.”