T&T executed well, says former JFF director
HOWARD MCINTOSH
Saturday, December 03, 2005
Well, for anyone who hasn't realised it, Trinidad and Tobago's football world changed forever on November 16, 2005. For those of us here in Jamaica who experienced World Cup qualification in 1997, we can understand the overwhelming joy, the unity of nation and spirit currently overtaking the twin-island republic.
They love to party and they have just been given one hell of a reason to party.
In the first leg of the home-and-away playoffs that ended 1-1 at the Hasley Crawford Stadium in the capital Port-Of-Spain, it was carnival.
Unfortunately, the result did not give Trinidadians good reason to celebrate. As a matter of fact, a group of us went to a party in Diego Martin and the mood was relatively sombre.
No shouting - just not a lot of "usual" craziness. Trinidad and Tobago had only drawn against Bahrain and some people were genuinely concerned that this could be another near miss of World Cup qualification - as was the case in 1973 and 1989.
But the Soca Warriors made sure to get the job done in Bahrain and gave their people something to celebrate.
But while the Trinis celebrated their achievements, there were some long faces in Jamaica. Why? Is it because some of us are jealous of our Trinidad and Tobago counterparts' success? Or is it the realisation that we (Reggae Boyz) lost out on a great opportunity? Something tells me it is the latter.
In Jamaica's failed World Cup qualifying campaign, the nation was able to assemble arguably the best aggregation of professional footballers. And there was also a flood of sponsors who came on board in droves and there was promise of more to come.
With the quality of players and that support from corporate Jamaica, what happened?
Whether we want to put the blame on the players and coaches or at the feet of the management of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), the fact is that we did not execute.
This is a problem that not only affects us in football, but is a serious problem that has afflicted the government, private sector and many of us in our day-to-day lives.
This failure to execute cannot be tolerated for too long as we will be doomed to the den of mediocrity. You see, in a globalised world, you must execute (especially when necessary), or get left behind. And this is exactly what happened to us: we did not execute. The JFF leadership must take heed.
Trinidad did what they had to do, and that was to execute when necessary. We should celebrate with our friends and not criticise them for their success.
Let us not perpetuate this anti-success "crab-in-a barrel" mentality that we have developed over the years. Let's recognise that "success is not measured by what you accomplish, but by the opposition you have encountered and the courage which you have maintained in the struggle against overwhelming odds".
Well done, Trinidad and Tobago.
Howard McIntosh is Chairman of Sports Logic, a member of the MSE Group. He is a former JFF Director, Chairman of the Technical and Finance Committees and was one of the key drivers of the successful Road to France Campaign in 1998.
