He could have been a mechanical engineer or a mathematics teacher, but instead, his love and passion for the sport was the deciding factor.
While still at St. Stephen’s College in Trinidad he developed an appetite for football coaching and has never looked back. His first opportunity to impart knowledge came when he was approached by a group of aspiring “lady ballers”.
“In my last year of high school, I started to coach the u-15 while still playing with my club. I remembered my first session helping some girls who were interested in playing football. They wanted some assistance so I went to help them and from there, I took a liking to coach,” he recalled.
According to Latchoo, who was appointed as senior national men’s head coach here in 2017, he was forced to make a tough decision. In the end, he opted for a career in coaching.
“After ‘A’ levels, I had applied to the University of the West Indies (UWI) to do mechanical engineering. So, soon after I found out that UWI had a course dealing with the arts and science of coaching and I wanted to be a sports psychologist since at that time I was looking up to Dr. Rudi Webster, who is a sports psychologist.
“So when I applied to UWI, I was told that I could not do both courses since I already had the application for the engineering course. I was then told to choose one so I chose the arts and science of coaching,” the devout family man and father of one explained.
From his early stint as a coach, he never looked back since many opportunities presented themselves.
“After pursuing the art and science of coaching, opportunities came and I started to do courses. I also started to work with some great people like Mohammad Issa and Keith Look Loy. I worked at Joe Public for seven years then I moved across to Caledonia where I worked for six years before coming to Dominica.
“Opportunities came up and for me, it was because of God. This is what His plan is for me to help people through football. That is the avenue that He chose so I will follow wherever it leads me.
“I would think that God has provided me with an opportunity and I am grateful for the opportunity to be exposed to such great mentors and persons. As I continue in football I ask every day that He continues to help me.
“At every stage of my life and career, God has provided me with very influential people like Anton Corneal, Lincoln Phillips and Sam Phillips as well as other people that I have worked with. For me, it is always about learning from people around me, even my staff, and even the players. You always keep learning. These opportunities that came about really were because of God and His plan. He always prepares you for the next step and while preparing you He is helping you to help other people. That is what life is about, using football as a vessel to help other people,” he remarked with a deep sense of Christian values.
Before arriving in Dominica, Latchoo had several stints with some of the top semi professional clubs in his homeland.
“At Joe Public, I worked with all the teams except the women’s team. I was the head coach of the pro team then I became the technical director. I worked with some of the top players both at Joe public and at Caledonia, where I was also the head coach. So this gave me the opportunity to learn quite a lot,” he explained.
Since arriving in Dominica in March of 2017, Coach Latchoo has had an immediate impact on the football landscape on the island and has helped design a number of DFA certified coach education courses.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my stint in Dominica thus far. I have met a lot of great people who have been very good to me. Since I have been here, I have tried to share my knowledge with all the coaches that I have come across. I believe that sharing knowledge is important since it allows everyone to be empowered.
“Along with the technical director and other members of the Dominica Football Association (DFA) technical department, we were able to put together the DFA’s first coach education license courses. These courses were designed to provide a platform for young coaches and to get them to understand the fundamentals of football coaching,” the CONCACAF coach instructor remarked.
Latchoo said that he has not regretted taking up the offer to coach in Dominica.
“Dominica was the right setting for me in terms of my beliefs and personalities and the beliefs and personalities of the players and the people in Dominica. What we have been doing over the last three years is building a foundation and a team that is capable of winning and exposing players so that they know what is winning.
“This is where we are now and once the players continue and once we continue to get the support that we have been getting from the DFA we will go places. We have to satisfy the public because we are playing for them. As we go along, all these will help us to get to where we want to go in terms of qualifying for the Gold Cup and World Cup.
“The aim now is to help the country to get results as these players get better, and I am seeing that they are getting better. I am still excited about football for this year because I have seen how the players have grown. This is what football is about, making the country proud by getting results.
“So that is the reason I believe that one day we will take Dominica to the Gold Cup and eventually to the World Cup,” he shared with a great sense of optimism.
Latchoo, has had the opportunity to coach several national teams during his tenure with the DFA. In July of 2017, he coached the senior national team to 2nd place in the Windward Islands Men’s Tournament, playing undefeated. Under his watch, Dominica qualified for League B in the 2019 CONCACAF Nations League. He has also coached the men’s under 23 team and the women’s senior team.
Latchoo has vast experience having completed several regional and international coach education programs. Apart from being a CONCACAF coach instructor, he is also a CONCACAF coach education mentor.