BALTIMORE, Maryland — Claine Plummer says the experience of being embedded with Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz is out of this world.

The 43-year-old former LA Galaxy goalkeeper says the kind of camaraderie and love he has seen among the players and staff has been an eye-opener.

Every day, he claims, is an adventure which he hopes will not end anytime soon, praying and hoping that the team goes all the way to the final and even to hoisting the prestigious trophy.

“The experience has been amazing… to have this experience first-hand is unbelievable and to see how much the group has embraced me… it’s just good to be here,” said Plummer, who is the CONCACAF liaison officer in the ongoing Gold Cup.

Having spent many years inside the locker rooms of professional football clubs, the atmosphere in the Jamaica camp is a breath of fresh air.

“I would have to say the sense of humour and the brotherhood they have is something I have never seen with any other team I have been with… at breakfast, lunch or dinner, there is always a smile, jokes and laughter, but when it’s time to get down to business, the focus of the game comes in,” Plummer shared with the Jamaica Observer.

Growing up in Costa Rica to a native mother and Jamaican father, Plummer said he and his siblings used to have a lot of fun, similarly to what he has come to find inside the Jamaican camp.

“The lighter side is something I grew up with, so to see it in a team is something I have never experienced before,” noted Plummer, who was the goalkeeper coach at the defunct MLS outfit, Chivas USA.

Plummer, whose father hails from Ocho Rios in St Ann, said the good vibe sweeping the team could be a recipe for success as the Boyz look to advance in the Gold Cup and the upcoming Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers.

“I would say part of it is that it can be the recipe to any success as in a group chemistry is important… not just chemistry on the field, but off the field as well.

“There are many great teams out there with good players that don’t have chemistry off the field, but what I see here with the Reggae Boyz is that they have chemistry on and off the field and that’s a huge recipe for success.”

Plummer — who joined the group in Los Angeles for the first game against his home country Costa Rica, which ended 2-2 — with sentiments aside, believes Jamaica could go on and win the tournament, which ends on July 26.

“I think this team can win the cup… if these guys continue to work for each other and with the brotherhood they have shown off the field, all this is a good indication that this team is ready, not only to win, but to be big in this particular tournament,” he said.

Plummer, who also had a stint with the El Paso Patriots of the USL back in the day, is of the view that Jamaica’s goalkeeping has grown leaps and bounds.

“I think Jamaica for a long time has had a good crop of goalkeepers. The goalkeeper coach (Warren Barrett) now, who was the goalkeeper at the 1998 World Cup, had a lot of good stuff and for him to be an example is good for goalkeepers in Jamaica,” he opined.

Jamaica were due to meet Haiti in the quarter-finals of the Gold Cup in the feature of a double-header at the M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore last evening at 8:00 pm (7:00 pm Jamaica time).

A victory would put the Boyz into the semi-finals where they would face either USA or Cuba, who were also scheduled to meet yesterday.

And should the Boyz progress, which they are highly expected to, Plummer will be along for the ride.

— Sean Williams