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WORRYING SIGNS FROM REGGAE BOYZ
The Reggae Boyz will not be the most confident lot going into their World Cup qualifying match against Guatamala come June 8. The Jamaican public will be a lot less so on that day as well. What is worse is that following the Boyz’ last performance at the national stadium on Sunday night, the Jamaica Football Federation now has its hands full in trying to convince to public to come out in support of the national team once the campaign begins.
Back in 1998 when Jamaica aimed to become the first English-speaking Caribbean country to qualify for the World Cup in France, Jamaica was abuzz with excitement and anticipation. The euphoria was constant and the expectation high right through until the Reggae Boyz crossed that final hurdle. Theodore Whitemore was one of the stars of the Reggae Boyz back then and he capped off a decent world cup performance with two goals against Japan securing Jamaica’s first ever World Cup win.
Three failed campaigns later and Whitmore, the hero of 1998, is now national coach and the fans are calling for his head, especially after this last debacle that saw Jamaica’s first lose its first match at the national stadium since 2007. Against the Panamanians, who before the match was ranked 52, one place below the Jamaicans on FIFA’s ranking table, the home team looked disjointed and lacking in chemistry. Even so, they hit the woodwork twice and muffed other good scoring opportunities which had the sparse crowd at the national stadium raining down boos at the team at half-time and at the end of the match.
The most obvious question isn’t it too late for the team to be working on chemistry? The United States, for example, easily the strongest team playing in Jamaica’s qualifying zone, this past weekend, smashed Scotland 5-1 as they prepared for the start of their campaign that will include matches against Jamaica, Guatemala and Antigua and Barbuda. It is true that Jamaica had won four matches in a row prior to Sunday night’s loss, but even the coaching staff will have to admit that not one of those matches inspired confidence.
In Jamaica’s last match before Sunday night, against Guyana’s Golden Jaguars, at the Catherine Hall Sports Complex in Montego Bay on May 18, they won courtesy of a Jeremy Lynch strike but the team was far from impressive. The performance had locals criticizing the play in the team’s midfield, which was absent again this past Sunday night, they questioned the play of the strikers, and they worried about the defensive line. On Sunday night, it was another ‘brain-freeze’ moment from the defense that literally stood and watched as Luis Renteria waltzed into the box and scored from a corner in the 17th minute to give Panama a 1-0 win.
But while the United States, a team that had its own struggles months ago as they assembled their squad, now seemed to be gelling at the right time, Jamaica is finding those same challenges now literally days bef0re the start of the campaign. This is not the time now for trial and error. This is the time when the team should have been gelling and looking to play football resembling what Jamaica produced during the Gold Cup last year when Jamaica dispatched the pesky Honduras and Guatemala before eventually falling to the United States.
Jamaica has one more match against Panama in Panama on June 1, before Guatemala arrives for the start of the Road to Rio campaign. It will have to use this match to get it’s strike force firing, it’s midfield showing up and its defenders on the same page. It will require almost a billion dollars to get Jamaica to Rio in 2014. Gate receipts will help provide a portion of that revenue but if those receipts are to have an impact, the Boyz will have to demonstrate that they deserve the public’s support. Jamaica still faces a massive economic crisis, money is hard to come by, and many expect those ticket prices to be high once the campaign begins. The Reggae Boyz will have to show marked improvement if they are going to have people come out in support, and with the competition expected to be intense home field advantage could play a crucial role.
The last thing that Captain Burrell, Theodore Whitmore and company would want is to be playing before an empty stadium when they need that ’12th player’ behind them. To do that, they have to do something to get them to show up in large number or the Road to Rio may just end with another failed attempt to get back to the World Cup.
http://gleanerblogs.com/sports/?p=1288
The Reggae Boyz will not be the most confident lot going into their World Cup qualifying match against Guatamala come June 8. The Jamaican public will be a lot less so on that day as well. What is worse is that following the Boyz’ last performance at the national stadium on Sunday night, the Jamaica Football Federation now has its hands full in trying to convince to public to come out in support of the national team once the campaign begins.
Back in 1998 when Jamaica aimed to become the first English-speaking Caribbean country to qualify for the World Cup in France, Jamaica was abuzz with excitement and anticipation. The euphoria was constant and the expectation high right through until the Reggae Boyz crossed that final hurdle. Theodore Whitemore was one of the stars of the Reggae Boyz back then and he capped off a decent world cup performance with two goals against Japan securing Jamaica’s first ever World Cup win.
Three failed campaigns later and Whitmore, the hero of 1998, is now national coach and the fans are calling for his head, especially after this last debacle that saw Jamaica’s first lose its first match at the national stadium since 2007. Against the Panamanians, who before the match was ranked 52, one place below the Jamaicans on FIFA’s ranking table, the home team looked disjointed and lacking in chemistry. Even so, they hit the woodwork twice and muffed other good scoring opportunities which had the sparse crowd at the national stadium raining down boos at the team at half-time and at the end of the match.
The most obvious question isn’t it too late for the team to be working on chemistry? The United States, for example, easily the strongest team playing in Jamaica’s qualifying zone, this past weekend, smashed Scotland 5-1 as they prepared for the start of their campaign that will include matches against Jamaica, Guatemala and Antigua and Barbuda. It is true that Jamaica had won four matches in a row prior to Sunday night’s loss, but even the coaching staff will have to admit that not one of those matches inspired confidence.
In Jamaica’s last match before Sunday night, against Guyana’s Golden Jaguars, at the Catherine Hall Sports Complex in Montego Bay on May 18, they won courtesy of a Jeremy Lynch strike but the team was far from impressive. The performance had locals criticizing the play in the team’s midfield, which was absent again this past Sunday night, they questioned the play of the strikers, and they worried about the defensive line. On Sunday night, it was another ‘brain-freeze’ moment from the defense that literally stood and watched as Luis Renteria waltzed into the box and scored from a corner in the 17th minute to give Panama a 1-0 win.
But while the United States, a team that had its own struggles months ago as they assembled their squad, now seemed to be gelling at the right time, Jamaica is finding those same challenges now literally days bef0re the start of the campaign. This is not the time now for trial and error. This is the time when the team should have been gelling and looking to play football resembling what Jamaica produced during the Gold Cup last year when Jamaica dispatched the pesky Honduras and Guatemala before eventually falling to the United States.
Jamaica has one more match against Panama in Panama on June 1, before Guatemala arrives for the start of the Road to Rio campaign. It will have to use this match to get it’s strike force firing, it’s midfield showing up and its defenders on the same page. It will require almost a billion dollars to get Jamaica to Rio in 2014. Gate receipts will help provide a portion of that revenue but if those receipts are to have an impact, the Boyz will have to demonstrate that they deserve the public’s support. Jamaica still faces a massive economic crisis, money is hard to come by, and many expect those ticket prices to be high once the campaign begins. The Reggae Boyz will have to show marked improvement if they are going to have people come out in support, and with the competition expected to be intense home field advantage could play a crucial role.
The last thing that Captain Burrell, Theodore Whitmore and company would want is to be playing before an empty stadium when they need that ’12th player’ behind them. To do that, they have to do something to get them to show up in large number or the Road to Rio may just end with another failed attempt to get back to the World Cup.
http://gleanerblogs.com/sports/?p=1288
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