By: Damoy Rowe
Success has evaded the Jamaica Reggae Boyz for some time now as lacklustre performances and improper management by coaches and the football federation have been their main highlights over the years. Many football hopefuls have lost faith in the team and are waiting for a team that will not just possess fame off the field but provide quality and historic victories on it.
The famous 1998 team got people talking about the little Caribbean island that made it to their first World Cup. Though they didn’t advance from the group stages, they definitely left their mark at the biggest football tournament known to man. It’s safe to say that team was special, and the nation has been looking for a team to mirror the achievements of that 98 squad; however, just like hide and seek, they are yet to be found.
With hope on the rise after some fragile restructuring, Jamaicans are expecting that the Reggae Boyz will finally deliver some international success as they embark on their quest for gold at this year’s 17th edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament that will be held in the United States of America. After a failed World Cup qualifying campaign that saw the team finishing 6th in the region under the guidance of former player turned coach Theodore Whitmore,
Whitmore was a great player in his time; however, the skill of coaching is an art, and if we are all being honest, he just didn’t have what it took to take the team to that competitive level. After all, with a team filled with attacking quality like Aston Villa star Leon Bailey, West Hams Michail Antonio who is West Hams, second-best leading goal scorer, and top striker from Spartak Moscow, Shamar Nicholson, it baffled many how the team couldn’t win games. His time subsequently came to an end, which prompted the appointment of Heimir Hallgrímsson on September 16, 2022.
Hallgrímsson’s appointment got fans hopeful of a turn around for the team and the nation, but his time in charge hasn’t been how he would have dreamed. The Icelandic manager has had the pleasure of being in charge for 277 days and was given the opportunity to prepare his team for battle on seven different occasions, but is still in search of his first win. He has had 3 draws and 4 losses. Their most recent defeat came to Jordan in Austria, where they lost 2-1 ahead of preparation for the first match in the Gold Cup tournament on June 24 against the defending champions USA.
Despite them being without star players such as Ethan Pinnock, Andre Blake, Leon Bailey, Michail Antonio, Damion Lowe, and Bobby Reid, it still leaves a question mark as to how the Boyz will fare at the tournament with back-to-back defeats in their preparation. The last time Jamaica made it to the finals of the competition was 2017, but they were defeated by the USA 2-1. Though it would be nice to see the team do well at this year’s edition of the Gold Cup, with the team still failing to find their footing and chemistry, it leaves a lingering taste of concern about how far they will go.
Photo By: 876Stream