INSPORTS League could save the day
AT a time when our young men are tottering on the fringe of society and consequently, the need to get them engaged in stimulating activities, one welcomes Claro’s three-year $51-million sponsorship package of the INSPORTS Community Football project as it will keep more than 12,000 youngsters off the streets over the next six months.
As fiscally impressive as the package is, however, the most heart-warming thing about this league is that it offers renewed hope for community-based activities in Jamaica — perhaps in the mould of the Police Youth Clubs which were so vibrant up to a decade or so ago, and so effectively bridged the chasm between citizens and the enforcers of the law.
Coming as it has when increasingly, business entities are citing the global economic meltdown for their unwillingness to embrace ventures such as these, the telecoms company has put its money where its mouth is and should be appropriately lauded.
Importantly, this community league encompasses the entire island and particularly targets inner-city youth who represent the most marginalised demographic group within most modern societies, including Jamaica.
Based on earlier reports carried in this newspaper, the pomp and pageantry has already begun,
with representatives from far-flung communities reportedly having “bombarded” the INSPORTS offices to get their teams aboard what is shaping up to become one of the most popular football competitions ever staged here at the grassroots level.
As one recalls, last year’s inaugural contest generated unprecedented fanfare, with St Ann team Claremont capturing the championship trophy.
This year, the winners stand to pocket half a million dollars, with the runners-up receiving some $150,000 and third, $100,000.
But prize money apart, there are other benefits to be derived from this competition, such as bragging rights among the communities across the country and the opportunity that hitherto never existed for players to be exposed to the bigger clubs.
In fact, Premier League clubs could seize this opportunity to scout for local talent — some of which would not have emerged at the schoolboy, or other age-group levels, for whatever reasons — and which, based on the current standard of play, should be more than welcome at these clubs.
Empirical evidence suggests that individuals are motivated by various stimuli. It is, therefore, not farfetched to believe that exceptional football talent could well exist outside the established schoolboy competitions and the Premier League, and that this is the stage that many an individual will choose to showcase his skills.
The importance accorded this year’s competition is underscored by the involvement of stakeholders like the National Council of Drug Abuse, the Jamaican Foundation for Lifelong Learning, the Inner-City Action Forum, the Consumer Affairs Commission, the Dispute Resolution Foundation, the National Youth Service, Career Advancement and the Island Special Constabulary Force (ISCF).
Further, against the background
that apart from the schoolboy competitions, not all parishes are represented in the top club tournaments in Jamaica, the Claro/INSPORTS Community League fills a critical void and should be treated with the proverbial ‘kids’ gloves with a view to improving the product as time goes by.
A perusal of the teams in this year’s DPL sees a serious lack of representation by the various parishes, with six — Manchester, St James, St Elizabeth, Hanover, St Mary and St Thomas — not qualifying a team for the nation’s top football competition.
It should also be noted that before Benfica forced their way into the top flight this season, St Ann had not had a representative in the National Premier League for well over
a decade.
Interestingly, grassroots competitions such as that proposed by INSPORTS and impressively supported by Claro are the mandate of FIFA, which is always willing to lend endorsement
via funding.
Maybe the time has come for our local football authorities to seriously look in this direction in the interest
of developing the world’s most popular sport.
As we await the start of this year’s competition, one hopes the organisers have done their homework in addressing the logistics of security, discipline and the other elements critical to the smooth running of a massive football competition.
The truth is that this could be the start of a revival of sorts in Jamaica’s football. After all, our youngsters are already playing on every available empty lot or street corner, so why
not engage them in organised activities that could ultimately be economically viable?