West Ham United academy coaches, Kalam Mooniaruck and Jamie Bather, have described club legend Clyde Best as a great source of motivation.

Bather, the head of education and player care at the academy and Mooniaruck, who is in charge of coach development, are on island to oversee West Ham’s young players in the Triangle Cup but took the opportunity to attend a fundraiser reception for the Hammers great striker’s documentary, Transforming the Beautiful Game, The Clyde Best Story.

“Knowing the history of the club is a really important factor of everything we try to do at the club, in particular at the academy,’’ Bather told The Royal Gazette.

“Clyde Best is a real part of the history and story of our club. We were already fortunate to have him visit not too long ago as part of the documentary. We got to meet him at the training ground and understand his story in detail.

“We then found out we were coming to Bermuda this summer and spent a bit of time to understand his story. It’s great to be here to hear first-hand his story and we’re looking forward to hearing more as the journey goes on.

“Prior to departure we had a player briefing where we shared some information around Clyde, knowing that the boys would be able to meet him and understand the story.

“Their understanding and knowledge of the story has grown and he’s someone who is inspirational to some of us as staff, players, the teams that are currently there and throughout the history of the club.

“He came to meet us on arrival at the airport, which we weren't expecting. We didn’t know it would happen and it was great for the boys to meet him.

“We have organised for Clyde to come to the hotel and he’ll spend some time with the boys, speak to them and share his experiences with the likes of Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and Sir Geoff Hurst.

“It’s amazing that these boys get the exposure of meeting him on the island and get to understand his film.”

Mooniaruck feels Best’s life story mirrors the challenges West Ham’s academy has faced.

“His story is part of why we’re able to compete as an academy,’’ Mooniaruck said.

“We were always the underdogs and we always have to go extra and do more to compete against the other teams and players in England.

“This was an inspiring event, it brought everyone together and Clyde spoke about how it’s not about himself but about the next generation.”

Bather and Mooniaruck presented Best with a West Ham shirt and a pennant signed by all 16 players on tour.

The jersey was given to them by Jake Hurst, who was part of the last West Ham team to tour the island, when the team won the 2018 Bermuda International Football Festival.

“The shirt came from us as an academy, it’s the shirt for the new season coming up,” Bather said.

“Jake Hurst, who was on the tour here in 2018 mentioned to us how Clyde was fantastic to our group and staff.

“When we asked about who to meet and talk to when we come here, Clyde was the person that people spoke to, which is quite impressive considering that he’s on the island and the status he enjoys.

“What they mentioned is that he’s so humble, he’s honest, he’s so helpful and they gave us a shirt and it was so great to give it to him.”

Dan Egan, the film director and producer, said they were aiming to have the 90-minute documentary aired in all 16 cities hosting the 2026 Fifa World Cup.

“Our plan is to release the film in the host cities of the 2026 Fifa World Cup,’’ Egan said.

“We’ll also have a panel discussion on racism in sport, and showcase Clyde and Bermuda, and what he went through in England as part of the experience of going to the World Cup.

“We’re now in the post-production and editing stage. In early 2026 we’ll do the big film festivals, Sundance and Cannes, if they accept the documentary.

“We’ll then premier the film in London, Bermuda and the US, and then we’ll be in the host cities of the Fifa World Cup.”

US actor Tony Head has been brought in as a narrator for the documentary.

“I’m coming in to do some narration on the film,’’ Head said.

“It was my first time meeting Clyde and he’s everything I thought he would be. He’s very humble and a genuine human being. When you look at his story, it makes sense that he is the man he is today.

“Brian Martin told me about this story several months ago and the first thing I did was research Clyde Best to find out more about him.

“I couldn't believe the story and the thing I couldn’t believe is that I didn't know anything about it. I immediately told them I wanted to be involved because I think people need to know about Clyde Best, and the role he played and how he confronted racism years ago.”