A slight indication of what's wrong with YardBall

[Jawge]

Here we go. As opposed to coming to Mobay? I have no idea, but I would hazard a guess it would shorter from Porti to KGN. Yes?

[Karl]

Jawge - I wasn't thinking of soccer when I mentioned US. I was thinking actually of basketball. There is no question you are right that in the US soccer is a suburban/middle class game. More generally speaking though, it is understandable that in small countries, the major population centers (typically the capital) will get the most spot light. I would *guess* that if you went to Guatemala, Panama, or Costa Rica, they would *probably* tell you the same thing.

...but?
Titchfield is nearer to Highgate, the Above Rocks school and other rural based schools...then there is the matter of those 2 previously named being nearer to 'town'. So should those 2 be in Manning Cup competition? ...and the schools in St Thomas?

Then if you add those 'near' to the Manning Cup, what about problems increased scheduling presents?

...or are you subtlety suggesting we should move to one all-island competition?

[Don1]

Mi nuh si wha all dis yappin pon town/kuntry tings is about

...when mi dun show unnu long time how fi reform di backward HS ball shitstem on a logical, merit-based, data-driven, effective & affordable basis:

How to revolutionize Schoolboy Football for Century 21

A. ISSA to create two regions for school ball.... Western Region & Eastern Region..... containing comparable numbers of schools... ~50-60 per region

B. Eastern Region to consist of schools from Kingston, St Andrew, St Catherine, Portland & St Thomas....
Western Region - Clarendon, Manchester, St Ann, St Elizabeth, Westmoreland, Hanover, St James & Trelawny

(ISSA can work out any parish adjustments suh mi nuh bizniz wid nuh quibbling ova placement minutiae)

C. Eastern Region competes for Manning Cup.... Western Region - DaCosta Cup

D. Each region further subdivided into 2 groups Manning Cup Premier League & Challenge League.... same for D'Cup

E. Premier League teams (~16 each region) will be seeded according to the schools with the best results over the preceding 5 years in their competitions. Challenge League teams will consist of those outside that top 16.

F. Premier & Challenge Leagues will be entirely separate competitions. Each year the top 4 teams in the Challenge League will be promoted to Premier...and the bottom 4 Premier teams demoted

G. After 16 home or away games ... the top 4 Premier league teams go into semi-final & final round... with winner taking the Manning & D'Cup trophies respectively.
Challenge League to have 2 zones with an eventual playoff format leading to a championship game

H. Manning & D'Cup winners meet for Olivier Shield trophy as usual

I. If there's no time for additional games... the Walker/Ben Francis knockout competitions can be scrapped... if there is time ...the top 4 teams/League (8 teams total representing Challenge & Premier Leagues) in each Region compete for knockout titles


So we'll have

1. The best teams competing head to head more often for improved player development

2. Logistics/Cost Control via a more rational regional structure

3. Incentive based system for promotion/demotion

4. Preservation of an irreplaceable 100 year legacy of high school ball

[Mosiah]

First problem with this list is you can't be a prospect when yuh over 20 years old!

[Reggaedoc]

True but we have a great advantage of being 146 miles long by fifty miles wide, we have a good highschool system which exposes many of these ballers but yet we keep going back to the town well for ballers that are weaker, less disciplined, less amenable to instruction in general.it has been shown over and over that our ballers of ballers are generally flawed on concepts of work and discipline which are severely influenced by the townstarballer culture.

And the selectors of the youth teams are just as biased/stupid.