Solve this problem?

[Karl]

Why is it we can produce top international athletes in Track and Field consistently at junior and senior national team levels and not in football?

NB: ...and arguably, 'track' is not our only sport that does this. Cricket and Netball can also make such claims. ...i.e. consistent production of top world national teams.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sport...-cricket_48238

[Peter R]

The following is not the answer to your question, BUT it may have something to do with it.

T&F, Swimming, and Cricket (arguably) are individual sports. Yes, cricket is made up of eleven men/women and as a bowler you expect the fielders to take catches etc., and running between the wickets can be made easier when your partner and you communicate well, but essentially the team's success is dependent on the sum of individual performances. Thus we can single out Stafanie (is suh it spell?) Taylor quite easily.

Football, IMO, as a team sport is more dynamic... the team acts as one cohesive unit continuously for ninety minutes, and while individuals within the dynamic can stand out, ultimately everyone needs to be constantly supporting their team-mates. From a coaching perspective, I'd say a cricket coach for example, can afford to spend way more time (proportionately) on technique than a football coach who also has to teach his/her system, tactics, strategy to the players.

The real answer of course is that there is no identifiably planned, holistic system in place in JA for the development of football. That's how I see it.

The problem can be addressed and hopefully solved by creating AND IMPLEMENTING the system (any one of a zillion proposed on this forum) to nurture players from u6 to senior.

[Stonigut]

Funnily enough I think there are two main reasons, one is measurement of performance, track and field and cricket are loaded with clear, distinct measurement criteria of what is good, mediocre, poor and excellent performance at every level of competition, football has some of that detail but our football infrastructure does not use that criteria to Id talent or to select best eleven, consequently we run out poor, mediocre untested athletes in football who do not have sufficient advantage in anything to stick the landing, so really Gardiner, Williams, Austin, Taylor and many of those is just buckup that the system actually finds them as the ones everybody touts always flop because they are not adequately prepared in the cauldron if competition or they have no physical advantage.

Everybody in Ja know if you not consistently running 10.2-3 mash in high school in 100 meters chances are you will never make it at any level beyond that, there are occasional exceptions but for most part performance rules and their is a clear straightforward measurement to tell you that, survival of consistently fastest etc etc, in cricket even a guy like Neita back in the 80's who banged out multiple centuries at Shell Shield level. Was never really in contention for windies based on others who were playing better and you don't play if you cannot contribute, so when we saw Courtney Walsh and Patterson tear up Sunlight and everybody was afraid to bat them, and they were taking lots of wickets for low runs from Sunlight all the way up the food chain that was very clear. In cricket and track it is very clear, performance rules, In football the criteria and standard of performance metrics is totally missing and something as basic as assists is not measured at all plus a whole roster of otger oerformance stats like number if shots taken, shots of goal etc etc so you can't really figutlre out who is really doing what. I can't really touch Netball don't know enough about it.

So as I was saying funnily enough, tge second point is it seems track, cricket and Netball are tied directly to old institutions in Jamaica linked deep back into the colonial structure, while football goes back a long way was not really developed with the same continuity and connections as with the other three, there may even be a class element in that argument.
Just my quattie worth.

[Jawge]

You have some good points. Brasil on the other hand has a system in place that dates way back on the flip side to Ja's track. This is why (with a few exceptions) Brasilians can say if you are not pro by 18 forget it. They use their football metrics to say that.

Ja can evolve too but the nation has to set a very high standard; especially with technique.

[Don1]

The following is not the answer to your question, BUT it may have something to do with it.

T&F, Swimming, and Cricket (arguably) are individual sports. Yes, cricket is made up of eleven men/women and as a bowler you expect the fielders to take catches etc., and running between the wickets can be made easier when your partner and you communicate well, but essentially the team's success is dependent on the sum of individual performances. Thus we can single out Stafanie (is suh it spell?) Taylor quite easily.

Football, IMO, as a team sport is more dynamic... the team acts as one cohesive unit continuously for ninety minutes, and while individuals within the dynamic can stand out, ultimately everyone needs to be constantly supporting their team-mates. From a coaching perspective, I'd say a cricket coach for example, can afford to spend way more time (proportionately) on technique than a football coach who also has to teach his/her system, tactics, strategy to the players.

The real answer of course is that there is no identifiably planned, holistic system in place in JA for the development of football. That's how I see it.

The problem can be addressed and hopefully solved by creating AND IMPLEMENTING the system (any one of a zillion proposed on this forum) to nurture players from u6 to senior.

1000% correct

Jamaican culture celebrates individualism and downplays TEAMWORK....in everything from politics, business....to sports. That approach literally doesn't play well in football.

Add to that a myopic thinking JFF with ignorant hurry-come-up "fans" who NEVER think beyond "making the next World Cup". A focus on developing the massive talents of our yutes is paid only lip service by said JFF and fans. Instead they go for hurry-come-up fixes like Snowball....which converts to long term disaster

From that we get a toxic mix that's the Jamaican recipe for continual failure in football

The curious thing is that they cannot see their really obvious folly

[Jawge]

Sorry PR didn't see yours. Saw Stoni's and ran with it. Your point is similar to Stoni's on the need for a system. Your emphasis on individualism vs team sport is very important. I hope things are clearer to Karl now.

[Stonigut]

Great programs for sure but I do think that football may leave too many good players on the table too early there may be a hole in some if those programs, especially the English system, look at Vardy and Morgan and a host of others who get dropped too early.

[myYout]

Is di last 8 years wi start produce di truly world beating performances innah track n field, an dat is due to di bolt effect, jus a special talent come along an revive di ting. Wi young ballah lack di three main facets, first touch, decision making an passing ability. Look an compare Nana, Pearl, Boo an Bibi to di youts ah today an di gulf innah ability is not eben close. Plus brukky boo is now a sin innah wi football, dat nuh idiot business. Di ability fi salad, pie an beat an man is di main characteristic ah first touch an decision makin, which all teach yuh to manage/control di ball which is di ultimate skill. Dem ballahs mentioned above did master dis ultimate skill.