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<TABLE style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" borderColor=#111111 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=631 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=bottom width=604></TD></TR><TR><TD width=631 colSpan=2>Thursday, September 14, 2006
(This is the first in a series of weekly articles by the Jamaica Football Federation) <TABLE style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" borderColor=#111111 cellSpacing=10 cellPadding=0 width=200 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
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It may have escaped some of us that our National Under 16 Footballers thumped the Under 16 Canada team 3/0 in a match as part of a hurriedly changed structure in the 2006 Caribbean Youth Tournament in August. They were not at all prepared for such an early encounter with Canada but were able to win decisively. Canada defeated our Under 15’s the year before.
A few weeks later our Senior National Reggae Boyz Team lost to the Senior Canadian Soccer team 0/1.
Both matches were played outside of Jamaica.
Many have focused on the latter loss, understandably so because the senior team is the obsession, the focus of football fans the world over. The senior team goes to the premier international football event every four years. Its successes indicate in the main where any national programme is.
But should we really ignore the difference in outcome of these two matches? I suggest not, although we should not boast of the one victory because against Canada we would want to be victorious at both levels.
The fact, however, is that the current administration from day one has put its emphasis on its youth programme. Let’s be very, very clear, however, this is not a youth vs. senior team policy. The philosophy behind it needs to be carefully noted and understood since there remain some things that are unclear. The policy is one that is very much interconnected.
It is related to what General Secretary Burchell Gibson described recently as a policy that aims to build from the bottom, to lay a strong foundation for what happens at the top. To that extent it is a qualitative change of gear from the direction of the past where the focus was on building the roof first and hoping it stays up. If it stands up, it can be very satisfying, even giving a feeling of safety……… but if it does not…..well think how we all feel when we become roofless after a storm.
This is not to ignore that in the past we did have success at youth World Cups but the undeniable concern has always been that it was not the result of a genuine building process that was transitional in its nature and that saw movement from one stage to the highest youth level and then to the senior level.
The current philosophy is to facilitate at all costs this genuine transition. We want flawless cement and other construction materials. <TABLE style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" borderColor=#111111 cellSpacing=10 cellPadding=0 width=100 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle bgColor=#006600>National Under 17 Team</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
The most impressive feature of the Under 16’s achievements recently which no doubt contributed to its overall good res
(This is the first in a series of weekly articles by the Jamaica Football Federation) <TABLE style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" borderColor=#111111 cellSpacing=10 cellPadding=0 width=200 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD><TD>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>It may have escaped some of us that our National Under 16 Footballers thumped the Under 16 Canada team 3/0 in a match as part of a hurriedly changed structure in the 2006 Caribbean Youth Tournament in August. They were not at all prepared for such an early encounter with Canada but were able to win decisively. Canada defeated our Under 15’s the year before.
A few weeks later our Senior National Reggae Boyz Team lost to the Senior Canadian Soccer team 0/1.
Both matches were played outside of Jamaica.
Many have focused on the latter loss, understandably so because the senior team is the obsession, the focus of football fans the world over. The senior team goes to the premier international football event every four years. Its successes indicate in the main where any national programme is.
But should we really ignore the difference in outcome of these two matches? I suggest not, although we should not boast of the one victory because against Canada we would want to be victorious at both levels.
The fact, however, is that the current administration from day one has put its emphasis on its youth programme. Let’s be very, very clear, however, this is not a youth vs. senior team policy. The philosophy behind it needs to be carefully noted and understood since there remain some things that are unclear. The policy is one that is very much interconnected.
It is related to what General Secretary Burchell Gibson described recently as a policy that aims to build from the bottom, to lay a strong foundation for what happens at the top. To that extent it is a qualitative change of gear from the direction of the past where the focus was on building the roof first and hoping it stays up. If it stands up, it can be very satisfying, even giving a feeling of safety……… but if it does not…..well think how we all feel when we become roofless after a storm.
This is not to ignore that in the past we did have success at youth World Cups but the undeniable concern has always been that it was not the result of a genuine building process that was transitional in its nature and that saw movement from one stage to the highest youth level and then to the senior level.
The current philosophy is to facilitate at all costs this genuine transition. We want flawless cement and other construction materials. <TABLE style="BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" borderColor=#111111 cellSpacing=10 cellPadding=0 width=100 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle bgColor=#006600>National Under 17 Team</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>The most impressive feature of the Under 16’s achievements recently which no doubt contributed to its overall good res
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