We received the sad news this morning that former football star of the late 1960’s and early 1970’s Calbert “Pomo” Usher died last night after a brief illness.
As a very young man in the peak of his athletic powers, Pomo suffered a stroke around early 1972, just hours after he had been training and swimming at the Barracks. At the time of his illness, Pomo was the starting right wing for 1st division team Red Stripe. He had previously also played for the then champions, Landivar.
In his teenage years before going on to stardom in 1st division football, he was one of the kings of football at Holy Redeemer backyard, where his nickname was “Cally Boom”, because of his powerful right-foot shot.
The stroke abruptly ended his playing career, but Pomo nevertheless kept up his involvement with the sport, assisting in the management of a number of 1st division football teams over the years, including Diamond A and Jaguars, with which he saw his dream of professional football realized in Belize, if only for a few months before Jaguars folded.
In his later years, Pomo was among the many disenchanted lovers of football, who looked forward to the day when the sport would be freed from the shackles of maladministration and return to its glory days in Belize.
We join other members of the Belize football family in expressing our sincere condolences to the relatives of Calbert “Pomo” Usher. R.I.P.