Kelvin Kyron Jack CM (born 29 April 1976) is a

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The country is home to people of many different national, ethnic and religious origins. As a ...

former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

who is goalkeeping coach at

Dover Athletic Dover Athletic Football Club is a semi-professional association football club based in the town of Dover, Kent, England. The club currently competes in the National League South, the sixth tier of English football. The club was formed in 198 ...

. He earned 33 caps for

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

between 1997 and 2006, playing for his country in the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

Playing career

Kelvin Jack started his career playing in Trinidad and Tobago with hometown club Trincity United and Joe Public before earning a scholarship to join

Yavapai College Yavapai College is a public community college in Yavapai County, Arizona. The main campus is in Prescott, with locations in Clarkdale, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley and Sedona. History Yavapai College was established in 1965 by means of a c ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. While a student there he helped the Roughriders win the NJCAA title in his first year and reach the 3rd position the following year. After finishing college he went to Norway for trials before returning to Trinidad, playing most notably with

San Juan Jabloteh San Juan Jabloteh Football Club is a football club located in San Juan, Trinidad and Tobago that plays in the country's TT Pro League. The team plays its home games in Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo, Trinidad. History The club was founded ...

for two seasons. Jack started his career in English football with

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

in 2004, but did not make any appearances for the club. Jack was later sold to

Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football' ...

team

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

, where he stayed despite their relegation to the

Scottish First Division The Scottish Football League First Division was the second tier in the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The First Division was introduced in 1975–76 to replace the old Scottish Football League Division Two, as t ...

. Jack was a regular member of the

Trinidad and Tobago national football team The Trinidad and Tobago national football team, nicknamed the " Soca Warriors", represents the twin-island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in international football. It is controlled by the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association, which is a m ...

during the qualifying campaign for the

, and travelled to Germany as coach

Leo Beenhakker Leo Beenhakker CM (; born 2 August 1942) is a Dutch international football coach. He has had an extensive and successful career both at club and international level. He led both Ajax and Feyenoord to Dutch championships and also had domestic s ...

's first-choice goalkeeper. He was expected to play in their first game against

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

but sustained a calf injury in the warm up, enabling

Shaka Hislop Neil Shaka Hislop CM (born 22 February 1969) is a retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Born in England, he played for them at under-21 level before representing Trinidad and Tobago at senior international level. The majority of his ...

to step in. Jack, who would later describe the experience as 'the saddest day of his life', also missed out on playing in the team's second match against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Jack did go on to play in the Soca Warriors' final group game against

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

, which ended in a 2–0 defeat in which

Brent Sancho Brent Sancho CM (born 13 March 1977) is a Trinidadian former professional football player and politician. In February 2015, he became the Minister of Sports for his home country, Trinidad and Tobago. Club career College Born in Port of Spa ...

scored an own goal. The Paraguay match was his final international match. Following the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Jack signed for Gillingham and made his debut in a 2–1 home win over

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...

on 5 August. However, in part due to injuries, he made only eleven appearances for the Gills. In February 2008, Jack joined

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

on trial but broke his leg in what was described as a "freak training ground accident". It was announced on 7 May 2008 that he had been released by Gillingham. He had since been training with English lower league clubs

Aldershot Town Aldershot Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Aldershot, Hampshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in the spring ...

and

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...

in a bid to regain his fitness. In February 2010, Jack joined

on a short-term contract to act as back-up whilst regular reserve goalkeeper

Ian Joyce Ian Francis Joyce (born July 12, 1985) is an American soccer player who most recently played for Major League Soccer club Colorado Rapids. Career Born in Kinnelon, New Jersey, Joyce played high school soccer at Don Bosco Preparatory High School ...

left on trial with an American club. Without making any appearances he was released at the end of the season on 11 May, and was signed to a one-year contract by

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

manager

Simon Davey Simon Davey (born 1 October 1970 in Swansea) is a Welsh former professional footballer and football manager. He is now Head Director of a youth club in America called Southern Soccer Academy. He played for Swansea City, Carlisle United and Pr ...

for the 2010–11 season. In October, unable to secure a first team place, he joined

Kettering Town Kettering Town Football Club is a football club based in Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire, England. They are currently members of and play at Latimer Park in Burton Latimer. Kettering were the first club to wear sponsorship on their shirts in ...

on a three-month loan. He was released by Darlington in January 2011. In a bid to keep up his fitness, Jack spent the 2011 pre-season training with

Isthmian League Division One South The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 teams ...

side Maidstone United and appeared in two of the club's pre-season friendlies. Shortly after, on 31 August 2011, Jack made a one-off appearance for

Isthmian League Premier Division The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 teams ...

side AFC Hornchurch, playing in a 2–1 loss away to Lowestoft Town after first-team goalkeeper Darren Behcet picked up an injury. On 11 November 2011, it was announced Jack had again joined up with Maidstone United to cover first-team goalkeeper Charlie Mitten after he suffered a hip injury. He made his debut a day later in a 4–1 win against

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside resort, seaside town in the district of Thanet District, Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to t ...

and made a total of three appearances for the club. He returned to his former club

in March 2012 to provide cover for the injured Laurie Walker, making his debut in their 1–3 defeat to

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional association football, football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they wer ...

on 31 March.

Coaching career

Jack joined the coaching staff of

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

side

in the summer of 2020, although he worked behind the scenes until it was announced in early January 2021. He joined a coaching setup consisting of manager

Andy Hessenthaler Andrew Hessenthaler (born 17 August 1965) is an English football manager and former player who is head of recruitment at club Gillingham. He began his career in non-league football and did not turn professional until he joined Watford at ...

assisted by Jack's former Gillingham teammate

Nicky Southall Leslie Nicholas Southall (born 28 January 1972), is an English former professional footballer, who was most recently first team coach at National League South side Dover Athletic. During his time in professional football Southall was a midfie ...

as well as

Liam Ridgewell Liam Matthew Ridgewell (born 21 July 1984) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a defender. He was primarily a centre back but could also play at left back. He is currently a coach for the Portland Timbers. Ridgewell, wh ...

Personal life

As a member of the squad that competed at the

in Germany, Jack was awarded the Chaconia Medal (Gold Class), the second highest

state decoration A state decoration is an object, such as a medal or the insignia of an Order (distinction), order, that is awarded by a sovereign state to honor the recipient. The term includes: *Civil awards and decorations *Military awards and decorations See ...

of Trinidad and Tobago. He married his longtime girlfriend Shellie-Ann Auguste on 7 June 2007.

References

External links

Kelvin Jack at FIFA.com

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jack, Kelvin 1976 births Living people Association football goalkeepers Trinidad and Tobago footballers Trinidad and Tobago international footballers Trinidad and Tobago expatriate footballers 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2006 FIFA World Cup players TT Pro League players Scottish Premier League players English Football League players W Connection F.C. players San Juan Jabloteh F.C. players Dundee F.C. players Reading F.C. players Gillingham F.C. players Southend United F.C. players Darlington F.C. players Kettering Town F.C. players Hornchurch F.C. players Maidstone United F.C. players Expatriate footballers in England Expatriate footballers in Scotland National League (English football) players Recipients of the Chaconia Medal Yavapai Roughriders men's soccer players Trinidad and Tobago expatriate sportspeople in England Trinidad and Tobago expatriate sportspeople in Scotland