JFF to blame for those idle Reggae Boyz
published: Wednesday | October 17, 2007
IT'S really beginning to sound like a scratched record, but yet another FIFA date has arrived and Jamaica's Reggae Boyz are idle.
Actually, two have been wasted within the past four days, counting Saturday as well.
For a team that begins qualification next year for the 2010 South Africa World Cup Finals, the situation is desperate, puzzling and downright irresponsible of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) for not holding up its end of the bargain and keeping the Boyz and the public engaged in international football activity.
The major contenders for the World Cup Finals spots from the Confederation of North, Central America and the Caribbean Associations of Football (CONCACAF) have been busy playing practice internationals. Mexico tied 2-2 at home with Nigeria on Sunday; Costa Rica and El Salvador ended with a similar result in San Salvador. Costa Rica had drawn their three previous friendlies against Peru, Honduras and Canada. Honduras beat Panama 1-0 at Tegucigalpa. The United States played Brazil in the U.S. last month and will engage Switzerland today in Basel, Switzerland. The Americans are also slated to face South Africa in Johannesburg on November 17.
Six more CONCACAF teams are in action today. Costa Rica will host Haiti in San Jose, Trinidad & Tobago will play El Salvador at San Salvador's Estadio Cuscatlan Stadium, Mexico will face Guatemala in another all-CONCACAF clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in California, United States.
Jamaica hammered
The last time Jamaica played a friendly international was on July 2, when it was hammered 1-8 in Iran. Today, five FIFA dates for friendly will have passed since, counting the one in August, two in September and now two this month.
On Saturday the team had been scheduled to play Ghana at Leyton Orient Stadium in London, England. That match went out the window as the police there never anticipated such a huge crowd and said it could not have upped its manpower to ensure safety controls.
That would have given technical director Velibor 'Bora' Milutinovic a real chance to get a real look at the European-based players in Jamaica's squad, the ones who are expected to shoulder the burden, the ones whom he has been largely working without until now.
Details of the Ghana match being called off were released on Tuesday. The JFF should have quickly sought a replacement, even a regional team.
Subsequently, the JFF and Nigeria got into negotiations for a friendly here in Kingston, as the Super Eagles were in the region for the friendly it played against Mexico on Sunday.
However, that also fell through as according to reports coming out of Nigeria, they backed down because the JFF didn't agree to cover the fare for the Mexico to Kingston flight for the 19-man Nigerian team and its officials. Instead, the report said the JFF had offered Nigeria US$70,000 and to cover its travelling costs from Kingston to London.
Running this football business is not cheap, but it is something that has to be done. It had been done in the past and should have been done continuously. The JFF's constant cry of inadequate funding is inexcusable and shows up the real inadequacies of those running the sport.
Need for regular friendlies
They have failed to keep the country interested by not playing friendly internationals on a regular basis, thus diminishing the team's marketing capabilities. A number of players came to the fore in the successful 'Road to France' programme and beyond because of the regular friendlies that were played at 'The Office', like Gregory Messam, Ian 'Pepe' Goodison and Winston 'Fanna' Griffiths. People got endeared to the football product and there were full stadiums and backing to support big matches.
This JFF administration has simply not tried and largely, it has contributed to the failure of many talented national teams to make a mark in qualifying tournaments.
The Under-23s are the most recent example, beaten by Bahamas, yes, Bahamas, then Haiti. Its coach, the man who had an integral role in team selection, Wendell Downswell, made an interesting comment regarding the exclusion of captain Jermaine Taylor and Mario Harrison, that they were sorely missed but dropped due to their fitness levels.
Interestingly, both players were here playing in the Premier League and none appeared unfit. Also, a number of better Under-23 players were here playing in the Premier League, having been replaced by Under-20 Boyz who made the final at what was really a watered down Pan-Am Games as the big teams had their top players playing at the Under-20 World Cup, which was being played simultaneously.
Now, if Jamaica's Reggae Boyz were to play a match tomorrow, one is not even certain who would play and that's all because yet again, they are idle.
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JFF to blame for those idle Reggae Boyz 
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