HE CONSIDERS HIMSELF the king of live football commentary in Barbados. In fact, Ivan “Speed” Forde contends that he introduced live commentary to the football and cricketing arenas.
Hailing from The Pine, St Michael, Forde, who played football for Pinelands and Barbados, revealed that it all started 18 years ago while watching a football match through the windows of a shanty in his Pinelands neighbourhood.
“We were playing backgammon, but from where the other men were sitting they could not see the game, but I could and I started to tell the others what was happening on the field. The men were so surprised and said, ‘Forde, you got we like we are actually seeing the match’.”
Then one night while attending an out-of-season football game at a location dubbed “The Palace”, Forde decided to take over the mike and give live commentary on the match. According to him, his fame grew from there, and many organizers of football tournaments have sought him out and asked him to give live commentary at various football matches.
With every match his confidence grew, and through his affiliation with Keith Griffith, who was a radio and television commentator at that time, Forde learnt a lot.
Forde is now celebrating 15 years of live commentary at various football matches across the island, especially during out-of-season tournaments.
His first paid assignment came when football coach Jack Bovell asked him to commentate at a football tournament at the Barbados Lumber company grounds.
But his most fulfilling experience came when he was hired by Banks Holdings Limited to give commentary at their inter-company open day. “I always remember the first time I did it. The marketing manager at that time came to me and said, ‘I hope you don’t go on the mike and curse’, and I looked at her in a funny way because in my mind I was wondering if she was trying to judge me because I am a ghetto youth. That discouraged me at first but I continued, and after the show she gave me compliments about my professionalism, and I did it for several years,” Forde recalled.
However, out-of-season football is where Forde feels most at home. He noted that before one football season is complete he is fully booked for the next. “There was so much work coming in that I could not get to every match throughout the season. [And] working at sometimes three matches per night would put some pressure on my voice,” he said.
But what makes him so much in demand, Forde says, is his humour and his understanding of what the crowd wants. But he points out that the most important thing is not to say anything to cause confusion regarding the referee’s decisions.
“For the entire time I have been commentating I have never heard of any violence at a match . . . if I see something about to flare up I tell the fans, ‘We come here to enjoy we selves; this is the poor people thing and we don’t want it stopped’, so they shy away,” he said.
What Forde would like at this point is the opportunity to commentate on one of the local radio stations. His previous efforts to have a live broadcast were not realized because he was told he would have to produce a prerecorded version of his commentary.
But even more frustrating for Forde is what he calls the lack of knowledge of other commentators. “Some of the people commentating do not even know the players’ names.”
Nevertheless, Forde remains committed to out-of-season football and is eagerly looking forward to the 2011 season. Given the violence experienced at football within recent years, he gives the fans this advice: “Be on your best behaviour because if we behave well the police will not interfere and we could have a grand time at 2011 out of season football.”