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Welcome back, and good luck, Mr Simoes
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Just under eight years after he made a tearful departure from Jamaica, Mr Rene Simoes has returned to guide our national football programme.
At the time he left, in February 2000, Mr Simoes said the demands of the job had taken a toll on his relationship with his family, given that his two elder daughters had moved to Miami and his wife could no longer make the football trips with him.
"It was a hard time and it affected my concentration. If I cannot be 100 per cent committed to anything I am doing. there is no way I can keep doing it," he said at a news conference.
The decision, we remember, took the country by surprise. But having seen and heard Mr Simoes in action for the five years in which he moulded a discordant squad of Jamaican footballers into a highly motivated team that qualified for the 1998 World Cup Football finals in France, we understood his position.
For that was the Rene Simoes Jamaica came to know and love - a man deeply committed to his job and who did not settle for half measures.
True, he often got into unnecessary quarrels with the media and came across as touchy when journalists do what they are paid to do - ask questions and report on events, even if they were not favourable to him.
In fact, we were a little amazed at how sensitive he was to criticism, given that he is from Brazil where people in his profession are subject to extreme inspection from officials and fans who are among world football's most fanatical.
But that, to us, did not define Mr Simoes. For in him we saw an unwavering disciplinarian with a knack for motivating, not only his players, but the entire country to share his vision of achievement at the highest level.
Who can forget the feeling of national pride that swept the entire island during the Reggae Boyz' campaign for the 1998 World Cup? It was a time when everyone was proud to be Jamaican and our flag flew high as the island revelled in the unity that we so often craved.
Those emotions intensified when we qualified for the World Cup Finals and lingered even after we made our exit in the first round, losing to Croatia and Argentina but beating Japan in our final match to come home with our heads held high.
Since then, regrettably, the foundation built by Mr Simoes, the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) and their sponsors has weakened and we have lost status in the world rankings.
Now, Mr Simoes has been given a mandate to improve Jamaica's standing by having us qualify for the 2010 World Cup Football finals in South Africa. His won't be an easy task, as our qualification programme starts in June this year, giving him very little time to shape the kind of squad that can pull off that feat.
But Mr Simoes cannot do this by himself. He will need the support of the country as he harnesses the talents that abound across the island. That support should also come in the form of respecting his insistence on discipline. For football is a team sport, therefore coaches should be given room to build teams and not be pressured by officials to pander to the childish behaviour of prima donnas.
Of course, Mr Simoes and the JFF should expect no less scrutiny from the media and, by extension, Jamaica this time around.
However, we would be remiss if we did not welcome back Mr Simoes and extend our best wishes to him and the Reggae Boyz.
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Just under eight years after he made a tearful departure from Jamaica, Mr Rene Simoes has returned to guide our national football programme.
At the time he left, in February 2000, Mr Simoes said the demands of the job had taken a toll on his relationship with his family, given that his two elder daughters had moved to Miami and his wife could no longer make the football trips with him.
"It was a hard time and it affected my concentration. If I cannot be 100 per cent committed to anything I am doing. there is no way I can keep doing it," he said at a news conference.
The decision, we remember, took the country by surprise. But having seen and heard Mr Simoes in action for the five years in which he moulded a discordant squad of Jamaican footballers into a highly motivated team that qualified for the 1998 World Cup Football finals in France, we understood his position.
For that was the Rene Simoes Jamaica came to know and love - a man deeply committed to his job and who did not settle for half measures.
True, he often got into unnecessary quarrels with the media and came across as touchy when journalists do what they are paid to do - ask questions and report on events, even if they were not favourable to him.
In fact, we were a little amazed at how sensitive he was to criticism, given that he is from Brazil where people in his profession are subject to extreme inspection from officials and fans who are among world football's most fanatical.
But that, to us, did not define Mr Simoes. For in him we saw an unwavering disciplinarian with a knack for motivating, not only his players, but the entire country to share his vision of achievement at the highest level.
Who can forget the feeling of national pride that swept the entire island during the Reggae Boyz' campaign for the 1998 World Cup? It was a time when everyone was proud to be Jamaican and our flag flew high as the island revelled in the unity that we so often craved.
Those emotions intensified when we qualified for the World Cup Finals and lingered even after we made our exit in the first round, losing to Croatia and Argentina but beating Japan in our final match to come home with our heads held high.
Since then, regrettably, the foundation built by Mr Simoes, the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) and their sponsors has weakened and we have lost status in the world rankings.
Now, Mr Simoes has been given a mandate to improve Jamaica's standing by having us qualify for the 2010 World Cup Football finals in South Africa. His won't be an easy task, as our qualification programme starts in June this year, giving him very little time to shape the kind of squad that can pull off that feat.
But Mr Simoes cannot do this by himself. He will need the support of the country as he harnesses the talents that abound across the island. That support should also come in the form of respecting his insistence on discipline. For football is a team sport, therefore coaches should be given room to build teams and not be pressured by officials to pander to the childish behaviour of prima donnas.
Of course, Mr Simoes and the JFF should expect no less scrutiny from the media and, by extension, Jamaica this time around.
However, we would be remiss if we did not welcome back Mr Simoes and extend our best wishes to him and the Reggae Boyz.