Stop the Freefall!

Apply the brakes, form a barricade of solutions, do anything to stop the freefall that sports in St. Vincent and the Grenadines is taking.

Urgent is the need that answers must be found immediately, as the situation is untenable.{{more}} Although winning is not everything, it is a motivator and a barometer relative to one’s standing against other teams.

For some time, we keep participating in competitions and tournaments rather than compete. As it were, making up the numbers.

This country has had little to shout about in recent times, as our national teams are failing to put it together when called upon on the regional or international scene.

Our Under-23 netballers failed in their attempt to retain the ECCB OECS Championship earlier this month, while the Under -16 showed some marginal improvements to finish third in the CNA tournament. Then, the senior team performed miserably in the just concluded Americas Federation of Netball Associations (AFNA) Tournament.

As this AFNA Tournament is fresh in our minds, it may be worth a closer look.

No one in our wildest expectations envisaged a tournament win for our girls, but at least a demonstration of grit and determination to do themselves and the nation proud. But we gave the best that we have.

Our girls were heavy footed because of poor fitness. They were deficient tactically, lacked gelling, and were unable to be innovative and think on their feet when situations arose.

Again, not on hindsight, but in a previous exposition of this publication, the poor preparation of the team was brought to the fore, but hopes were for some on-the-court magic and an exhibition of commitment. But these never showed up.

Many who know or who are just critics will have a lot to say about the team’s performance, and eventual placing, but the problems of Netball are inherent in the very way the sport is administered and structured.

This column has always been an advocate that having forty odd teams in the national tournament cannot augur well for development, and the production of formidable national teams.

Maybe the outcome of this Tournament is a blessing, as the Executive of the SVGNA will make an announcement soon that they will be Closed for Stocktaking.

But my biggest fear came through, that the Netball politics was played out on the courts at the Arnos Vale Sports Complex. Sadly, the discord among certain members of the team oozed out for all to see.

It must have been a harrowing experience for immediate former Captain cum Coach, Dellarice Duncan, thrown in at the deep end, to be asked to practically turn water into wine.

For certain, it must be back to the drawing board for Mc Intosh and company. They may even need to acquire a drawing board, as the situation could warrant starting from scratch.

Unpatriotic, some may say, but the jeers directed at our local girls at the closing ceremony were the extent of the frustration of the diehard Netball fans.

Last week’s experience with our netballers was a case of déjà vu, as the same held for Vincy Heat who were booted out of the second round of the CONCACAF Zone of the World Cup Football qualifiers. Again, there was talent, but failure to have the proper development structure in place was our downfall. Similarly, our top athletes turned in below average performances at the NACAC Under-23 and the CAC Track and Field Championships.

In addition, only one athlete was able to make the standard for the Beijing Olympics which starts in a week’s time.

The Under-19 cricketers made it three in a row at this year’s Windward Islands Tournament.

Ironically, we do well at the Junior levels at Cricket, but this does not continue at the senior stage. For a few years, this country has failed to lift the Windwards senior title, and not many Vincentians are able to command places in the Windwards team for the regional four day or One Day Tournaments.

The major sports which consume the attention of the sporting public here are readily the ones that regurlarly come under the microscope, when performances are not up to standard.

Thrown in the mix is the potential pantry of budding sportsmen and women, who are looked upon to be harnessed through the multi sport exercise, involving Football, Athletics, Basketball, Volleyball and Netball, called the Windward Islands Secondary Schools’ Games.

But this annual excursion seems not to be helping as this country in recent times has taken out the licence for the last position.

In the melee, we spend millions of dollars on three facilities, whose surfaces are not conducive for Football nor Athletics.

The downward slide in performance is compounded by the fact that many in corporate St. Vincent and the Grenadines are shifting their sponsorship from sports to fashion shows, big fetes and shows involving foreign artistes.

While there is no one cause for this rot, there is no one solution either.

The national consultations on Sports, the associations holding their annual retreats, among other processes, are not putting a dent on the careening path.

Most sports associations boast of having a development plan, yet the manifestation is on the contrary.

But this is still the right road to take, as building from the bottom is paramount. The Talent Identification Programme must be part of all sporting bodies, so, too is the scientific approach in developing the athletes.

Physical Education, too, must be done in all schools and not games periods.

A central organization to administer all sports here is another avenue that should be pursued. The current set up is flawed with duplication of efforts.

And, getting the right people in the right positions who know about sports is another key ingredient in the mix.

Not in the mix, though, is the suitable piece of squat land at the Sion Hill Playing Field, called ‘The Mound’.

kingroache@yahoo.com