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JFF stricken by arrogance
When Captain Horace Burrell cemented his second coming as president of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) on Sunday, November 4, 2007, I was elated to see him back at helm after the uninspiring tenure of his predecessor Crenston Boxhill.
In fact, I left the Beaches Negril Hotel, where the transition from Boxhill to Burrell was formalised at a JFF special Voting Congress, quite upbeat, especially after hearing the then new president declare, "I can tell you that a new dawn has arrived and I can assure you that better days are ahead."
However, within a few short months, I began to have second thoughts about the new administration as, instead of the promised changes which were outlined in an ambitious eight-prong road map to the future, what I saw was a gradual return to the old way, which had caused the [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]affiliates[/COLOR][/COLOR] to reject Burrell for Boxhill.
scandalous
First, the indecent haste in rejecting Malvern in St Elizabeth as the venue for the proposed JFF Football Academy was scandalous at best, as to date there has been no reasonable case made for that decision.
Things got worse, as far as I am concerned, when gross negligence on the part of the federation allowed Rene Simoes to wreck our World Cup 2010 campaign.
As I began to question myself about whether or not the trust I had in the new Burrell administration was justified, my uncertainty was further compounded when I watched as they failed to demand accountability from the leaders in the west, resulting in us being abandoned and left on a path to destruction.
In fact, with the JFF hiding in its own shadow, the burden of stewardship that they should have carried basically fell on the back of the media, which became the only sounding board for disgruntled fans and [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]affiliates[/COLOR][/COLOR], who have become fed up with rank incompetence, which has taken our football from pride of place to hopeless disgrace.
I have noticed that a few persons, who seem more interested in looking good in the eyes of Captain Burrell than properly servicing the region's football, have been accusing the media of trying to destroy football in the west. And based on unconfirmed reports, it is said that the JFF, either out of ignorance or blind loyalty, is also of the same view.
Well, for those who are seeking to find solace in blaming the media, there are a few pertinent questions that they need to answer. First, is it the media or inept leadership that has resulted in the west moving from four NPL teams 10 years ago to just one, which narrowly escaped relegation last season?
media's role
Does the media have a role in the west moving from nine players in the 1998 World Cup squad to not even a single player today?
Regardless of how blinded to reality one can get, after the arrogance displayed by the JFF in the Digicel/Claro sponsorship impasse with KSAFA and the contemptuous treatment of coach John Barnes, who was not allowed to take the Reggae Boyz to the Gold Cup after taking them through the qualifying tournament, it must be clear that there is not a seat in the JFF for humility.
Things hit rock bottom for me when I heard Captain Burrell on television asking a reporter if he was doing PR for KSAFA, after he asked what I considered to be pertinent questions regarding the JFF/KSAFA sponsorship saga. Unless my recollection has gone faulty, I thought national football belonged to the people of Jamaica and not only to those in leadership. As I sit here today trying to analyse all that has transpired in national football since November 4, 2007, including the numerous broken promises and scandalous situations, such as a nine-month overdue annual general meeting in Hanover, I honestly believe that this JFF has been a colossal failure. NB. Feel free to send your feedback to adrianfrater@ hotmail.com.
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