BELIZE CITY, Mon. Mar. 1, 2021– A couple months ago, when talented 1970s footballer Rudolph “Bolo” McKoy heard about the drive to provide assistance to ailing legend Rudolph “Peru” Olivera and his younger brother Wayne “Hogman” Olivera, both current stroke victims in Belize City, Bolo sent his first financial contribution along with two clippings from Amandala of Friday, January 13, 1978.
Bolo joined fourteen others who have banded together under the team name, Peru Olivera Support Team (P.O.S.T.), and they each make a small weekly cash contribution to the cause of their ailing football brothers who are now unable to work and have no standing for benefits from social security. The plan was for at least 20 team members, so we are still seeking five more past footballers or fans who would like to “show some love” to two past football greats, Peru and Hogman.
The first clipping that Bolo sent is part of a story titled “BEER AND WHISKY WIN,” and is accompanied by a picture captioned “Peru Olivera.”
Peru was already famous for his two late goals off feeds from Garrincha Adderly to give Stann Creek’s Queen’s Park Rangers the 2-1 victory and Inter-District championship over Orange Walk at the MCC Grounds back around 1972. He had later come to the city to play for Diamond A, then J&E and later White Label, who were the defending 1976-77 Belize City champions.
We pick up the story from page 9, and share only the following paragraph:
“The goal when it came, came from Sammy Gentle who had replaced Flowers on the right wing for the Label. With determined second effort, Gentle saved a ball that was about to go over the goal line and centered low. The Landivar defence might have relaxed a little, who knows, but the cool Peru who had glided up from the middle to the penalty area received Gentle’s center and shot all in one motion, beating Petillo with the sheer unexpectedness of his appearance. There were between fifteen and twenty minutes left in the game when Peru worked his magic and that’s the way it ended. White Label 1-0 over Mr. Hoy.”
The second clipping from the same issue is an interesting reflection, as 34 Belizean players from across the country and abroad are currently being considered for selection to a 23-man national team roster for upcoming World Cup 2022 Qualifiers, our first being on March 25 in Haiti. This other January 1978 Amandala story is titled “BELIZE WILL ROLL THE BALL IN COLOMBIA.” That planned trip to Colombia may not have occurred, but in late 1978 a Belize selection, that many consider the best we have ever put together, did travel to Mexico and were undefeated in 5 encounters. (See “Sports, Sin And Subversion” by Evan X Hyde.)
The story, dated Tues. Jan. 10, has great historical value, as it highlights what would have been most (not all) of the big names in Belize football at the time. And the names of Peru (Rudolph) and Hogman (Wayne) Olivera are right there. See below:
“A total of 33 footballers from all over the country have been selected to try out for the Belize national team which will represent the country in Colombia, S.A., for the Central American and Caribbean Games. The final squad, which should be travelling to Colombia in July will comprise no more than eighteen men, and maybe as few as fifteen so the BAFA selection committee will have their work cut out for them.
Player-coach as usual will be Berger 404’s Christobal Mayan and other players from Berger 404 include:
BERGER 404 – Karl Robateau, Larry Bennett, Johnny Smith, Walter Cooper, Jack Sutherland, Fabian Rivero, Gene Guild, Ricky Gongora.
WHITE LABEL – Rupert Anderson, Mandingo Barnett, Peru Olivera, James Adderly.
CHARGER – Noel Ferguson, Wayne Olivera, Windell Middleton.
CROSS POT – Hilly Craig, Rudolph McKoy, Lem Robinson.
BELPRINT – Maurice Jones, Gas McField.
CHITO’S – Harrison Flowers.
LANDIVAR – Patatu Cutkelvin, Alger Bradley.
A.Q. and Co. – Eric Kisling.
CAYO – Pelis Neal, Tash Gutierrez.
STANN CREEK – Buck Palacio, Orin Orio, Garrincha Adderly.
ORANGE WALK – Enrique Carballo.
COROZAL – Armando Vasquez.
TOLEDO – Chuck Gutierrez.”
(P.S. Current P.O.S.T. members are: Marlon Kuylen, Al Westby, Raymond Davis, Lewis Belisle, Jr., Russell Vellos, Daland Jones, Max Gentle (Rogers Stadium Sports & Culture Club), Anthony Kuylen, Sr., Jacinto “Tash” Gutierrez, Idemuei (Nolbert) Moss, Maurice Jones, Lawrence “Chanks” Nicholas, Michael Usher, Rudolph “Bolo” McKoy, Charles x Hyde.)