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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><SPAN class=TopStory>Boxhill ready for challenge</SPAN>
<SPAN class=Subheadline>... will seek re-election for JFF's top post</SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>BY ERICA VIRTUE Observer writer
Sunday, December 24, 2006
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<P class=StoryText align=justify>President of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) Crenston Boxhill says he will be seeking re-election for the top job at the helm of Jamaica's football programme with Africa 2010 at the forefront of his mind.<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=135 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR><TD><SPAN class=Description>BOXHILL... I am not a quitter, I am a fighter </SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><P class=StoryText align=justify>"I'm in the race. I will be defending my tenure. The election is a year away, but I don't see anything at this point which should disqualify me from seeking re-election," Boxhill told the Sunday Observer.
The elections - although a year away - could have as many as four contenders vying for the top job, with former boss, Captain Horace Burrell, being one of them.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Captain Burrell recently declared his intention to seek re-election for the job he lost three years ago to Boxhill.
A confident Boxhill said it did not matter how many persons were in the race.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"This is an election, it is not a war. You are going to campaign hard and you are going to defend your tenure, against your objectives and achievements over your term in office," the football boss said.
Boxhill has had a rocky reign so far, surviving at least two no-confidence motions. The last one was in January this year and was moved by supporters of Captain Burrell.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Captain Burrell, whom Boxhill defeated at the polls for the job 54-49 in November 2003, is senior vice-president of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU), an executive member of CONCACAF and one who has a lot of contacts in the high realms of world football.
Boxhill successfully beat the motion with 51 of the 104 voting delegates backing the motion.
A two-thirds majority was needed to successfully uphold a no-confidence motion according to the JFF's constitution, while a simple majority is required for a winner.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Dogged also by fractiousness within some of the confederations, including another no-confidence motion from the South Central Confederation in August, Boxhill has had an uphill task unifying the JFF, a task made particularly difficult after Jamaica crashed out of World Cup qualification for Germany.
Although he is disappointed that the team did not make it to Germany, his biggest failure he admitted was when the senior team crashed out of the Digicel Caribbean Cup in the first round.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"When they crashed out I felt like I was going to be sick. It's football, but you know, the team was given everything to aid in its quest, but when the final whistle went and you realise they were out, it is not a nice feeling," Boxhill said.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The JFF president, despite all the obstacles in the way, is no quitter.
"I am not a quitter. I am a fighter. I don't give up when the going gets tough, I stay and fight a good fight. That was how I was brought up. You win some, you lose some, but you stay and fight, that's the stuff that builds character.," he said.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"I don't care how many persons are in the race, this is not a contest about individuals, it is about the passion of a people and how I can bring that passion to life with the country's support," he added.
With much of the tension now out of his face, his smile broadened when the new technical director Velibor 'Bora' Milutinovic interrupted the
<SPAN class=Subheadline>... will seek re-election for JFF's top post</SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>BY ERICA VIRTUE Observer writer
Sunday, December 24, 2006
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<P class=StoryText align=justify>President of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) Crenston Boxhill says he will be seeking re-election for the top job at the helm of Jamaica's football programme with Africa 2010 at the forefront of his mind.<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=135 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR><TD><SPAN class=Description>BOXHILL... I am not a quitter, I am a fighter </SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><P class=StoryText align=justify>"I'm in the race. I will be defending my tenure. The election is a year away, but I don't see anything at this point which should disqualify me from seeking re-election," Boxhill told the Sunday Observer.The elections - although a year away - could have as many as four contenders vying for the top job, with former boss, Captain Horace Burrell, being one of them.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Captain Burrell recently declared his intention to seek re-election for the job he lost three years ago to Boxhill.
A confident Boxhill said it did not matter how many persons were in the race.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"This is an election, it is not a war. You are going to campaign hard and you are going to defend your tenure, against your objectives and achievements over your term in office," the football boss said.
Boxhill has had a rocky reign so far, surviving at least two no-confidence motions. The last one was in January this year and was moved by supporters of Captain Burrell.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Captain Burrell, whom Boxhill defeated at the polls for the job 54-49 in November 2003, is senior vice-president of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU), an executive member of CONCACAF and one who has a lot of contacts in the high realms of world football.
Boxhill successfully beat the motion with 51 of the 104 voting delegates backing the motion.
A two-thirds majority was needed to successfully uphold a no-confidence motion according to the JFF's constitution, while a simple majority is required for a winner.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Dogged also by fractiousness within some of the confederations, including another no-confidence motion from the South Central Confederation in August, Boxhill has had an uphill task unifying the JFF, a task made particularly difficult after Jamaica crashed out of World Cup qualification for Germany.
Although he is disappointed that the team did not make it to Germany, his biggest failure he admitted was when the senior team crashed out of the Digicel Caribbean Cup in the first round.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"When they crashed out I felt like I was going to be sick. It's football, but you know, the team was given everything to aid in its quest, but when the final whistle went and you realise they were out, it is not a nice feeling," Boxhill said.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The JFF president, despite all the obstacles in the way, is no quitter.
"I am not a quitter. I am a fighter. I don't give up when the going gets tough, I stay and fight a good fight. That was how I was brought up. You win some, you lose some, but you stay and fight, that's the stuff that builds character.," he said.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"I don't care how many persons are in the race, this is not a contest about individuals, it is about the passion of a people and how I can bring that passion to life with the country's support," he added.
With much of the tension now out of his face, his smile broadened when the new technical director Velibor 'Bora' Milutinovic interrupted the
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