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Schoolboys will play football forever
FROM THE SPORTS DESK
BY HARTLEY ANDERSON
Sunday, December 05, 2010
THE fact that the sporting fraternity has in recent times been weighing in on the schoolboy football debate positively signifies maturity, growth and an unprecedented interest at this level.
That Jamaica has come a far way in football is as much a given as it is to be expected in a sporting milieu that embraces a scientific approach to sport and offers much more by way of opportunities and incentives than at any other time in our history.
This sustained interest in schoolboy football is not only a welcome 'diversion', but also a necessary intervention even as one ponders these relevant issues at this important stage of
our development.
It is a fact that the challenge for ISSA -- the local organising body for high school sports -- is to implement measures to circumvent the overload of our adolescent boys in a 'vigorous' season that sees each team playing a minimum of eight to 10 matches in both the daCosta and Manning Cup.
Further, this situation has triggered pervasive debates in the local media over the past month or so, with ISSA reportedly lending a listening air.
While the engagement of these youngsters in meaningful activities cannot be sufficiently lauded, it becomes a nightmare for the organisers when an already rigid schedule is affected by unforeseen circumstances, like the weather. This situation usually leads to a mad rush by ISSA to reschedule matches to ensure that the competitions end on time and are not carried over into the equally frenetic new school term normally reserved for athletics and cricket.
All this has come about because of the large number of schools that participate in both contests. At the last count, there were at least 80 institutions spread across some 12 parishes playing in the rural area daCosta Cup, with another 40 parading their skills in the Manning Cup. Of course, the matter of venues is almost as contentious as the number of matches that are played over a short period.
Over the years, ISSA has been tireless in its thrust to present sporting competitions of the highest calibre from an organisational perspective, with the quality and standard of the respective sports being, of course, the domain of the schools themselves.
As it currenty stands, however, maybe the time has indeed come for the implementation of a two-tiered system for which so many individuals have been advocating, and which currently obtains in the Urban Area Under-19 cricket competition.
The most popular suggestion being heard is for the stronger teams to play in one competition, with the other parading the weaker teams, which would be determined by recent results. According to this theory, a distinct advantage would be the playing of fewer matches by the schoolboys and the opportunity for the organisers to better monitor and regulate these 'scaled-down' competitions.
Indeed, there is nothing wrong with 'weaker' schools aspiring to compete in the prestigious and storied Manning and daCosta Cup competitions. Also, these second-tiered teams would conceivably compete for a new trophy in both rural and urban areas, with the practice of promotion and demotion of teams being an integral part of this proposed system.
However, in charting a course for the future of schoolboy football, one should consider the significant shift that has occurred within the educational environment over the past two decades, with a host of New Secondary schools being upgraded to high schools, and ISSA being caught in the dilemma of catering to an additional 50-odd schools for competitions that were initially conceptualised to accommodate far less than half of this number, and for which they should be very highly commended.
As one awaits the decision on subsequent schoolboy football seasons, it probably won't be business as usual if the feverish debates are anything to go by. Simultaneously, ISSA's sensitivity to the magnitude of the matter and the seriousness with which fans take the sport should be here underlined.
Critically, however, the local governing body is the ultimate authority on the matter, not only in terms of running the competitions, but also in determining the most pragmatic approach to adopt if changes are to be made to what is already a top-class product.
Likewise, ISSA should be aware that even though it's important to listen, it cannot please everybody. Consequently, it must make the decisions that are in the best interest of the concerned stakeholders, of which the sponsors, the players and the sport are the most important.
For, the old adage, 'one swallow does not a summer make', is perhaps appropriate at this juncture even as one faces a contentious matter rife with passion, and not necessarily reason. The fact is that there were no such arguments in the numerous seasons that preceded 2010. Ironically, at a time when there is all this excitement about schoolboys being burnt out, Rene Simoes did postulate that a chink in the local armoury is that Jamaican youngsters are not playing enough competitive football -- playing as they are for only three months of the year.
In an emerging professional environment, and bearing in mind that the average schoolboy will play football whenever he gets the chance, it should be considered that practice indeed makes perfect.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sport...#ixzz17HP1hyMO
FROM THE SPORTS DESK
BY HARTLEY ANDERSON
Sunday, December 05, 2010
THE fact that the sporting fraternity has in recent times been weighing in on the schoolboy football debate positively signifies maturity, growth and an unprecedented interest at this level.
That Jamaica has come a far way in football is as much a given as it is to be expected in a sporting milieu that embraces a scientific approach to sport and offers much more by way of opportunities and incentives than at any other time in our history.
This sustained interest in schoolboy football is not only a welcome 'diversion', but also a necessary intervention even as one ponders these relevant issues at this important stage of
our development.
It is a fact that the challenge for ISSA -- the local organising body for high school sports -- is to implement measures to circumvent the overload of our adolescent boys in a 'vigorous' season that sees each team playing a minimum of eight to 10 matches in both the daCosta and Manning Cup.
Further, this situation has triggered pervasive debates in the local media over the past month or so, with ISSA reportedly lending a listening air.
While the engagement of these youngsters in meaningful activities cannot be sufficiently lauded, it becomes a nightmare for the organisers when an already rigid schedule is affected by unforeseen circumstances, like the weather. This situation usually leads to a mad rush by ISSA to reschedule matches to ensure that the competitions end on time and are not carried over into the equally frenetic new school term normally reserved for athletics and cricket.
All this has come about because of the large number of schools that participate in both contests. At the last count, there were at least 80 institutions spread across some 12 parishes playing in the rural area daCosta Cup, with another 40 parading their skills in the Manning Cup. Of course, the matter of venues is almost as contentious as the number of matches that are played over a short period.
Over the years, ISSA has been tireless in its thrust to present sporting competitions of the highest calibre from an organisational perspective, with the quality and standard of the respective sports being, of course, the domain of the schools themselves.
As it currenty stands, however, maybe the time has indeed come for the implementation of a two-tiered system for which so many individuals have been advocating, and which currently obtains in the Urban Area Under-19 cricket competition.
The most popular suggestion being heard is for the stronger teams to play in one competition, with the other parading the weaker teams, which would be determined by recent results. According to this theory, a distinct advantage would be the playing of fewer matches by the schoolboys and the opportunity for the organisers to better monitor and regulate these 'scaled-down' competitions.
Indeed, there is nothing wrong with 'weaker' schools aspiring to compete in the prestigious and storied Manning and daCosta Cup competitions. Also, these second-tiered teams would conceivably compete for a new trophy in both rural and urban areas, with the practice of promotion and demotion of teams being an integral part of this proposed system.
However, in charting a course for the future of schoolboy football, one should consider the significant shift that has occurred within the educational environment over the past two decades, with a host of New Secondary schools being upgraded to high schools, and ISSA being caught in the dilemma of catering to an additional 50-odd schools for competitions that were initially conceptualised to accommodate far less than half of this number, and for which they should be very highly commended.
As one awaits the decision on subsequent schoolboy football seasons, it probably won't be business as usual if the feverish debates are anything to go by. Simultaneously, ISSA's sensitivity to the magnitude of the matter and the seriousness with which fans take the sport should be here underlined.
Critically, however, the local governing body is the ultimate authority on the matter, not only in terms of running the competitions, but also in determining the most pragmatic approach to adopt if changes are to be made to what is already a top-class product.
Likewise, ISSA should be aware that even though it's important to listen, it cannot please everybody. Consequently, it must make the decisions that are in the best interest of the concerned stakeholders, of which the sponsors, the players and the sport are the most important.
For, the old adage, 'one swallow does not a summer make', is perhaps appropriate at this juncture even as one faces a contentious matter rife with passion, and not necessarily reason. The fact is that there were no such arguments in the numerous seasons that preceded 2010. Ironically, at a time when there is all this excitement about schoolboys being burnt out, Rene Simoes did postulate that a chink in the local armoury is that Jamaican youngsters are not playing enough competitive football -- playing as they are for only three months of the year.
In an emerging professional environment, and bearing in mind that the average schoolboy will play football whenever he gets the chance, it should be considered that practice indeed makes perfect.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sport...#ixzz17HP1hyMO