SVGFF needs soccer development plan

Tue, Oct 16, 2012

Editor: While the SVGFF Executive celebrated its first year in office September 2012, thirty-six years ago, Soccerama and the Referees Association were established. In October 1978, SVGFF became a member of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) and a year later St Vincent and the Grenadines became independent.{{more}}

It’s also 20 years since the SVGFF senior team played its first World Cup preliminary game, March 22nd, 1992 against St Lucia. Since then, the SVGFF executives has been receiving from FIFA technical assistance and football development funds of US$250,000.00 annually.

Executives have come and gone, enjoying the players and sports benefits, and have neither celebrated the first nor second ten years, nor showcased what they have or have not achieved, so others would know, and know where to follow. Soccer has had the pleasure of professionals serving as executive members, namely pharmacists, bankers, accountants, academic educators, contractors, politicians, lawyers, just to name a few. Most, if not all, were inexperienced and unknowledgeable of the sport and the process of its development. Today, the SVGFF, like those that served in the past years, have yet to produce a Soccer Development Plan which can be implemented; instead they have all developed huge debts, lowered the standard of the sport, not forgetting the numerous allegations of misappropriated funds, making others afraid to associate with the SVGFF.

The question is, are there signs that soccer and the SVGFF would improve in the near future? Please identify those signs, show and tell a friend or who is next to you, so they can identify with the signs and start preparing for the future.

October SVGFF senior team will compete in the CFU-Caribbean Football Union Competition in St Lucia. Let us wish them the best, so we all can have one big celebration come Independence Day, 27th October 2012.

I believe Team SVG can win its group. Teams like Avenues united, Prospect F.C, System Three and Pastures would beat teams in the group like Guyana, Curacao and St Lucia any day.

My advice is: players must take shots to score, so shoot on target. “Without a purpose, direction is not possible”. Good luck.

Oh! I forgot the Coaching Clinic was officially launched October 1982.

Rollit Walrond