<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><SPAN class=TopStory>Gibson calls for unity in local football</SPAN>
<SPAN class=Subheadline></SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>BY PAUL A REID Observer Writer
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<P class=StoryText align=justify>MONTEGO BAY - Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) general secretary Burchell Gibson said the local governing body has shown vision and commitment to the development of the sport, and called for patience in the ongoing process.<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=150 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD><SPAN class=Description>GIBSON... game should be perceived in holistic manner, not in fractions </SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson called for football unity, saying the game should be perceived in a holistic manner, and not in fractions.
Gibson was delivering the main address at Thursday's awards ceremony of the St James Football Association/Sandals Division One league at Frank Warren Chapel at Sandals, Montego Bay.
Gibson spoke against the background of "the one-sided attack on the current football leadership" which "seems like an annual crusade" by former general secretary Horace Reid of the previous JFF administration.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson said contrary to remarks made by Reid, the previous administration's handling of the finances was not done with prudence, competence and vision.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The Portland FA boss asked whether it was prudent financial management that saw former president Captain Horace Burrell having to lend the federation money, which resulted in the current administration inheriting a debt of over $13m owing to him.
Gibson said instead of Burrell having to bail out the JFF from time to time, better financial practices should have been implemented to ensure the viability of the federation.<P class=StoryText align=justify>It was the vision of the current administration, he said, that led to "the ownership of real estate (the largest capital investment in the federation's history) that is going to result in the establishment of a football academy that will have a far-reaching impact on the development of football locally".<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson compared plans for the academy at Malvern, St Elizabeth, that calls for four full-sized football fields against previous plans for the academy at Portmore that had space for one-and-a-half fields.
The lands in St Elizabeth, he said, is owned by the JFF - not leased - and would "bring tremendous advantages to the development and sustainability of football in the country".<P class=StoryText align=justify>According to Gibson, it was the vision of the current administration that led to new investments by corporate Jamaica, including an additional $65m from Cable & Wireless and an increase from $10m to $16m by Wisynco.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson cited the growth of women's football and the increase in sponsorship, adding that the JFF has managed to attract significant sponsorship for the various leagues.<P class=StoryText align=justify>He argued that the country's qualification for three sucessive FIFA World Cup tournaments between 1998 and 2000 should have seen significant investments being plowed back into the coffers, but this was not so.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson said the absence of games at the National Stadium following Jamaica's elimination from the 2006 World Cup campaign was not an easy decision, but a calculated gamble which would understandably make the JFF unpopular. However, they could not afford to be reckless, he added.<P class=StoryText align=justify>
<SPAN class=Subheadline></SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>BY PAUL A REID Observer Writer
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<P class=StoryText align=justify>MONTEGO BAY - Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) general secretary Burchell Gibson said the local governing body has shown vision and commitment to the development of the sport, and called for patience in the ongoing process.<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=150 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD><SPAN class=Description>GIBSON... game should be perceived in holistic manner, not in fractions </SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson called for football unity, saying the game should be perceived in a holistic manner, and not in fractions.
Gibson was delivering the main address at Thursday's awards ceremony of the St James Football Association/Sandals Division One league at Frank Warren Chapel at Sandals, Montego Bay.
Gibson spoke against the background of "the one-sided attack on the current football leadership" which "seems like an annual crusade" by former general secretary Horace Reid of the previous JFF administration.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson said contrary to remarks made by Reid, the previous administration's handling of the finances was not done with prudence, competence and vision.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The Portland FA boss asked whether it was prudent financial management that saw former president Captain Horace Burrell having to lend the federation money, which resulted in the current administration inheriting a debt of over $13m owing to him.
Gibson said instead of Burrell having to bail out the JFF from time to time, better financial practices should have been implemented to ensure the viability of the federation.<P class=StoryText align=justify>It was the vision of the current administration, he said, that led to "the ownership of real estate (the largest capital investment in the federation's history) that is going to result in the establishment of a football academy that will have a far-reaching impact on the development of football locally".<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson compared plans for the academy at Malvern, St Elizabeth, that calls for four full-sized football fields against previous plans for the academy at Portmore that had space for one-and-a-half fields.
The lands in St Elizabeth, he said, is owned by the JFF - not leased - and would "bring tremendous advantages to the development and sustainability of football in the country".<P class=StoryText align=justify>According to Gibson, it was the vision of the current administration that led to new investments by corporate Jamaica, including an additional $65m from Cable & Wireless and an increase from $10m to $16m by Wisynco.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson cited the growth of women's football and the increase in sponsorship, adding that the JFF has managed to attract significant sponsorship for the various leagues.<P class=StoryText align=justify>He argued that the country's qualification for three sucessive FIFA World Cup tournaments between 1998 and 2000 should have seen significant investments being plowed back into the coffers, but this was not so.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Gibson said the absence of games at the National Stadium following Jamaica's elimination from the 2006 World Cup campaign was not an easy decision, but a calculated gamble which would understandably make the JFF unpopular. However, they could not afford to be reckless, he added.<P class=StoryText align=justify>
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