The first leg of the Digicel Kick Start Clinics 2010 drew to a close yesterday and former England and Liverpool legend and Head Coach, John Barnes, spoke exclusively to www.digicelfootball.com about his first impressions on this year’s crop of talented footballers.

“It’s going well – the boys are all under 16 so they’re young, but that doesn’t stand in the way of the quality. We have the two best players from each club in the Digicel Pro League which means we have a lot of talent taking part in these Clinics.

“Monday was the first day and we started off with some general training – some passing and work on their touch and control so that I got a chance to observe them. Then yesterday I put the boys into two squads and they played a match which gave me a real opportunity to see what we have in terms of potential to go and train with Sunderland which was great.

“I don’t want to mention names at this stage – but yes, I have spotted a couple of talented boys, with one boy in particular who I think shows promise. But there are three more countries and three more groups of passionate young footballers all wanting a chance, so we’ll have to wait and see,” continued Barnes.

The next stop for the Digicel Kick Start Clinics is Panama where 29 boys – who were drawn from a selection of 200 – will try out for their chance to train for one week at UK Premier League Club, Sunderland AFC’s Academy of Light. The Clinics take place in Panama this Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th July.

The Digicel Kick Start Clinics are supported by Jack Warner, Vice President of FIFA and President of both CONCACAF and the Caribbean Football Union.

Digicel has been involved in a wide range of football initiatives designed to support the development of football in the Caribbean and Central America over the last six years. Digicel, which has operations in 32 countries worldwide, sponsors 17 Football Federations and Leagues, as well as the Digicel Caribbean Cup and the Copa de Naciones Digicel in Central America.