Captain Horace Burrell was a rock-solid leader and a flamboyant personality; a visionary who took Jamaica’s football to dizzying heights in the late 1990s.

And for those who knew him in the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) he was a true soldier.

“A man of his word; an officer and a gentleman, and a man of integrity,” Robert Finzi-Smith, who was trained by Burrell in the JDF, told the Jamaica Observer.

“Some people become officers in anybody’s army and they are divorced from what soldiering is all about. Never could anyone say that about Horace Burrell,” Finzi-Smith continued.

Retired Major General John Simmonds, who served as Chief of Defence Staff, described Burrell as a unique being with an eye for excellence.

“He was an individual, like… larger than life. He was a guy who had a vision and wanted to do things, he was very dynamic and you could see the strong leadership qualities from those days,” Simmonds, who left the army in 2002, said.

Burrell, who was sitting president of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), died on Tuseday, June 6, in the United States after battling with prostate cancer. He was 67.

He was JFF boss between 1994 and 2003, and again from 2007 to the time of his death. He was also a senior vice-president of CONCACAF, the region’s governing football body, and a former vice-president of the Caribbean Football Union.

Burrell was the engine behind Jamaica’s qualification to the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France. He also oversaw Jamaica’s historic progress to the final of the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2015.

During Burrell’s tenure as president, Jamaica also qualified for three global youth competitions. The Under-17s reached the FIFA World Cup tournaments in New Zealand in 1999 and in Mexico in 2011.

The Young Reggae Boyz also qualified for the Under-20 World Cup in 2001 in Argentina.

Burrell founded the popular Jamaican restaurant chain The Captain’s Bakery and Grill in 1995 and was also boss of Captain’s Aviation Services since 2008.

He was a driving force behind the JDF’s football programme in the 1980s.

Finzi-Smith, a security expert by profession, says he remains thankful for the guidance Burrell provided.

“I joined the JDF in 1974 as an officer cadet. At the time Jamaica had started sending officer cadets to places other than Britain. Myself and about three others were slated to go to Canada for a course and Burrell was my training officer.

“Him did rough! At the time I don’t think he was a captain as yet, he was a lieutenant. It is something that makes me forever grateful to him because the preparation that they put us through for Canada essentially made us survive it,” said Finzi-Smith, who acted as a security guru with the national football teams for both local and international assignments.

Simmonds, who played football, hockey and squash for Jamaica, remembers Burrell as an ambitious young soldier.

“I was a lieutenant at the time he came in and was senior to him, but he was in a different company from me so he didn’t report to me. Whatever he put his mind to he always succeeded. I remember when he was in the infantry he was always interested in flying and he made a big effort to learn to fly.

“He was always interested in football although he wasn’t a football player per se, but in the administration of the game he took over and did a good job at the JDF.”

Simmonds, who has served on the JFF board of directors, was last year appointed to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, following in the footsteps of Burrell. He told the Observer that Burrell, whom he last saw in March this year, was a major factor.

“He was definitely an influential individual and he had respect in the football circles both internationally and locally and he recommended me. I really appreciate what he did.

“He was my dear friend and I’m going to miss him… it really hit me. It’s still a bit difficult for me.”

Finzi-Smith, who said he spoke to Burrell a month ago, described the Captain as being dedicated and committed, almost to a fault.

“If he wants something bad enough, help him get it or get out his way. He took on nothing he intended to fail at; failure wasn’t an option.

“He tended to ask my opinion on certain things. I think I’m one of the few people who would tell Horace ‘no, don’t do it that way’. But if he made up his mind that he knew other things that you didn’t he would do his own thing,” Finzi-Smith said.

The respect the JFF boss commanded globally was indisputable.

“If you travelled with him and saw the respect he got from international people of note, it burned me sometimes how Jamaicans attempted to treat him. They were a lot of [friendly international] matches that we got that if it weren’t for Horace Burrell we wouldn’t get those.

“It’s [his death leaves] a hole that I hope some day we will fill, but I’m very grateful to have known him. He took it [Jamaica’s football] from a brief case to a building and it’s for us to build on that.

“Horace Burrell put together a proposition for a franchise system that would not only improve, but also revolutionise Jamaica’s local football. And some clubs fought [against] it for their own personal interest. I think the best thing we could do in terms of honouring his memory is to ensure the franchise system works,” said Finzi Smith.

Simmonds also believes in the establishment of a lasting legacy.

“I personally would like to suggest that the [JFF] Technical Centre be dedicated and be named the Horace Burrell Academy,” said the Major General.

“Jamaica is going to dearly miss the Captain. He is going to be hard to replace because of his leadership and his strength, and he was a great motivator.

“He put so much into Jamaican football in terms of money and time and as president of Jamaica’s football it is not a paying job. I remember when he said that ‘the one thing I want to achieve is for Jamaica to reach the World Cup’,” Simmonds said.