Sports Person of the Week

Ernie ‘Gillie’ Seymour

Friday,  January 6, 2006

Although he only started playing football at age 10 – ancient by today’s standards – Ernie Edison Seymour has certainly made up for it.

He played for the Cayman National Team for approximately 15 years, and is still active in the Masters League.

However, it is coaching that really binds Coach Gillie to football. He started coaching in 1984, working with the Under-12 National Team.

“I think I was chosen by God to do this, because when I got involved with the under 12 team, nobody really wanted to do it. And I just got caught up in it,” he says.

Coach Gille is involved at all levels of the game, working with various schools on their football programmes. However, his main involvement is with George Town Primary’s school programme, and George Hicks High School. He is also coach of the George Town Sports Club team, and the GTSC women’s team.

“I enjoy what I’m doing for one reason – no matter how much discipline you apply in your coaching, 95 percent of the players always come back for more. And that 95 percent go on to make good of their lives,” he says.

Coach Gillie’s grandparents, Abronah and Hewitt Seymour, played a major role in his life. His grandmother Abronah is his hero, but there is no more important person in his life than his mother, Aletha Seymour/David.

Coach Gillie explains that his nickname ‘Gillie’ comes from his father, who was originally from Belize, and carried the family name Gill. He says the nickname just stuck, and reminds him of the other part of his family.

Coach Gillie has seven children – five boys and two girls – but says that rumours that he is trying to build a football team are completely unfounded. He also has two grandsons and a granddaughter, but views them as his sons and daughters, to the extent that he occasionally has to stop and check how many sons and daughters he mentions. He sees his children and grandchildren as his representatives, as the ones who will carry his legacy one day when he is gone.

“I don’t just teach the fundamentals of football – I teach life skills. How you apply yourself in football is how you apply yourself in life. I teach children to stick it out till the end,” says Coach Gillie.

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