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After watching the Reggae Boyz play the last three friendly internationals, I am convinced that we do have the goods to qualify for Brazil. Our first mission is to finish in the top two in a group involving the USA, Guatamala and Antigua & Barbuda. Our first qualifier, against Guatamala at home, is on June 8.
That's only a little over three months away, and Theodore 'Tappa' Whitmore must be tossing in his bed at night, agonising over which eleven will take the field for that opening game. I don't envy him. This side is not easy to pick!
What compounds Tappa's problem is that there are only two more friendlies between now and then: Costa Rica on March 21 and Panama on May 27. None of those dates are FIFA dates, so, quite likely, he won't even have the luxury of seeing all the overseas-based players at his disposal, prior to that June 8 date, and will have to consider picking some players on reputation and form alone.
Mind you, some of the decisions should be fairly straightforward. Richard McCallum, Jacomena Barrett and company have done well between the sticks, but none should be good enough yet to replace Donovan Ricketts.
The right-back problem, I think, has been solved. Xavian Virgo of Boys' Town has been playing too well for anybody else to be considered.
Who for left back?
At left back, Demar Phillips is still the most obvious choice, although Waterhouse's Andrae Campbell has impressed. There is also somebody by the name of 'Bibi' Gardner, who can play either left back or on the left side of midfield, and Tappa has shown that he is not averse to selecting ageing players. Remember he had wanted 'Pepe' Goodison, who is almost 40, to go to the last Gold Cup. So at left back, the issue is far from settled.
At centre half, Tappa went for Claude Davis and Damion Stewart for the last game against New Zealand, with Jermaine Taylor playing just in front of them, and Adrian Reid coming on as substitute.
The experiment with Taylor playing in front of the two centre halves is an experiment that Tappa must be thinking long and hard about, and indeed may well be dispensed with. With Shavar Thomas (a former captain) still in the mix, it means two, possibly three, of these will not start in that game on June 8.
Taylor, I believe, is automatic, but who to partner him at his most accustomed position of centre half must be giving the coaching staff grey hairs. If we play 5-3-2, one of those will play 'last man' and two will play centre half. At this stage, Tappa must be hedging his bets.
The decision of who is the holding midfielder is still outstanding. Maybe Rodolph Austin and Jason Morrison are still the front-runners, but Tappa clearly likes Harbour View's bustling journeyman, Richard 'Short Man' Edwards. There is also the no-nonsense Oneil 'Bigga' Thompson from Boys' Town, and the impressive box-to-box player, Arnett Gardens' Rohan Reid.
Khari Stephenson seems to be the forgotten man, but could still resurface, and Joel Senior showed enough enterprise and industry to still be in the coach's mind. Of those names, only one or two will play, depending on the formation we employ. Here again, Tappa has his work cut out.
Battle for midfield spots
In the attacking midfield position, the thing becomes even more problematic. At long last, the coach has remembered Jermaine Hue, and Jerry's jaw-dropping first-half performance in the second game against Cuba should see him pencilled him. Who to partner him is not easy.
Jevaughn Watson and Keammar Daley are the front-runners, but Jermaine Johnson and Damion Williams are still outside choices. People like Omar Daley and Jamal Campbell-Rice may well have seen their last international game, or have they?
Up front, there is no obvious two. Luton Shelton, Ricardo Fuller, Ryan Johnson, Omar Cummings, Dane Richards, Navion Boyd and, possibly, Marlon King are all in the mix. Tremaine Stewart could well be an outsider, and the Kingston College schoolboy Jorginho James may have to wait his turn.
At this stage I am not sure that even Tappa himself knows who his two strikers will be. Indeed, I am positive he doesn't know what his team will be.
So yes, with the World Cup qualifiers looming, the coach has a serious selection dilemma in most areas of the field. He does have the wisdom of the Brazilians to guide him, but you wonder at which stage Tappa might just say, "Eenie meenie miney moe!"
That's only a little over three months away, and Theodore 'Tappa' Whitmore must be tossing in his bed at night, agonising over which eleven will take the field for that opening game. I don't envy him. This side is not easy to pick!
What compounds Tappa's problem is that there are only two more friendlies between now and then: Costa Rica on March 21 and Panama on May 27. None of those dates are FIFA dates, so, quite likely, he won't even have the luxury of seeing all the overseas-based players at his disposal, prior to that June 8 date, and will have to consider picking some players on reputation and form alone.
Mind you, some of the decisions should be fairly straightforward. Richard McCallum, Jacomena Barrett and company have done well between the sticks, but none should be good enough yet to replace Donovan Ricketts.
The right-back problem, I think, has been solved. Xavian Virgo of Boys' Town has been playing too well for anybody else to be considered.
Who for left back?
At left back, Demar Phillips is still the most obvious choice, although Waterhouse's Andrae Campbell has impressed. There is also somebody by the name of 'Bibi' Gardner, who can play either left back or on the left side of midfield, and Tappa has shown that he is not averse to selecting ageing players. Remember he had wanted 'Pepe' Goodison, who is almost 40, to go to the last Gold Cup. So at left back, the issue is far from settled.
At centre half, Tappa went for Claude Davis and Damion Stewart for the last game against New Zealand, with Jermaine Taylor playing just in front of them, and Adrian Reid coming on as substitute.
The experiment with Taylor playing in front of the two centre halves is an experiment that Tappa must be thinking long and hard about, and indeed may well be dispensed with. With Shavar Thomas (a former captain) still in the mix, it means two, possibly three, of these will not start in that game on June 8.
Taylor, I believe, is automatic, but who to partner him at his most accustomed position of centre half must be giving the coaching staff grey hairs. If we play 5-3-2, one of those will play 'last man' and two will play centre half. At this stage, Tappa must be hedging his bets.
The decision of who is the holding midfielder is still outstanding. Maybe Rodolph Austin and Jason Morrison are still the front-runners, but Tappa clearly likes Harbour View's bustling journeyman, Richard 'Short Man' Edwards. There is also the no-nonsense Oneil 'Bigga' Thompson from Boys' Town, and the impressive box-to-box player, Arnett Gardens' Rohan Reid.
Khari Stephenson seems to be the forgotten man, but could still resurface, and Joel Senior showed enough enterprise and industry to still be in the coach's mind. Of those names, only one or two will play, depending on the formation we employ. Here again, Tappa has his work cut out.
Battle for midfield spots
In the attacking midfield position, the thing becomes even more problematic. At long last, the coach has remembered Jermaine Hue, and Jerry's jaw-dropping first-half performance in the second game against Cuba should see him pencilled him. Who to partner him is not easy.
Jevaughn Watson and Keammar Daley are the front-runners, but Jermaine Johnson and Damion Williams are still outside choices. People like Omar Daley and Jamal Campbell-Rice may well have seen their last international game, or have they?
Up front, there is no obvious two. Luton Shelton, Ricardo Fuller, Ryan Johnson, Omar Cummings, Dane Richards, Navion Boyd and, possibly, Marlon King are all in the mix. Tremaine Stewart could well be an outsider, and the Kingston College schoolboy Jorginho James may have to wait his turn.
At this stage I am not sure that even Tappa himself knows who his two strikers will be. Indeed, I am positive he doesn't know what his team will be.
So yes, with the World Cup qualifiers looming, the coach has a serious selection dilemma in most areas of the field. He does have the wisdom of the Brazilians to guide him, but you wonder at which stage Tappa might just say, "Eenie meenie miney moe!"
Paul Marin -19 is one thing, 20 is a whole other matter. It gets even worse if they win the UCL. *groan*. 
05/18/2011.MU fans naah cough, but all a unuh a vomit?-Lazie 1/11/2015
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