Rated in his time as one of the most powerful kickers of a football John Sutherland etched his name among the great players in Trinidad and Tobago for almost two decades, and in a period when it wasn't very easy to get into a first class club side either in the north or in the south. But Sutherland hurdled over the roughs that were there in the 1930's and 1940's when he sparkled in the forward lines of United British Oilfields Trinidad (UBOT) and the national team itself.

To have played at inside-left for Trinidad then, he had to out-class some of the finest players ever in that position, including the artistic Rex Burnett. But so he did, and no one who ever watched this tough, clever player with the powerful shot will deny him the right to be placed in the highest class of soccer stars who graced the fields of this country. Sutherland was born in Port of Spain and attended Belmont R.C. School for whom he played. He always played in the forward line and became a star with the second-class team, Aston, as he developed his skills at the Queen's Park Savannah. In 1934 he went to work in the oil belt and it was there he emerged as a top forward with the mighty UBOT, regarded by many experts as the most powerful football club to play first class football in any part of Trinidad and Tobago.

From the moment he landed in the UBOT team, Sutherland was destined to become something of a legend. His squat, power build brought him the sobriquet "Bull," thereby the name John Bull which has been his name since. He represented South in almost every Red Cross Cup Classic against North from 1934 to 1948 and was in the victorious UBOT teams that won the FA Trophy in 1937 and 1941 and Gooden Chisholm Cup in 1941, 1943, 1945 and 1949. He was also a member of the great South forward line of Babsie Daniel, Whatty Douglas, Ken Galt, John 'Bull' Sutherland and Boysie Monteil which some old timers claim was the best attack ever seen on local football field.

Sutherland first represented Trinidad in 1935 against Jamaica in Jamaica and also played for his country in internationals with Surinam and British Guiana (now Guyana). He became a part-time British Army soldier in 1939 when the Second World War began. That year he reserved his soccer talent for UBOT for whom he continued to play during the war years when that club reigned supreme in the South. In fact, in 1943 UBOT won every match they contested that year including the FA Trophy clash with Sporting Club of the north whom they beat 3-1 and the memorable Gooden Chisholm game with Fleet Air Arm who led 4-0 at half time only to see UBOT recover to win 6-5.

Sutherland continued to play first class football into the 1950's but gave way in the South team to younger players. He remained in the game until he was 55, playing in friendly and some easy competitive matches on Sunday mornings, still packing a wallop with both feet. He was also a good club cricketer, often playing for UBOT during the cricket season. But no sooner did the season end he would be back in his togs, hunting for goalkeepers. One of Sutherland's most cherished memories is an early season with UBOT when he scored 13 goals in his first matches and finished the season with many to his name. UBOT invariably struck fear in the hearts of North teams when they came to town, and the man they feared most, perhaps, was a powerhouse named John "Bull" Sutherland.
(T&T Sports Hall of Fame bio)