St. Vincent & the Grenadines vs St. Kitts & Nevis was admittedly the keenest encounter of Group B of the Digicel Caribbean Cup 2010. The local lads now take the heat to Trinidad and Group F where they are expected to clash with three of the regions’ most formidable football outfits. Guyana, now ranked 2nd in CFU, Haiti, and the new-look Soca Warriors would all take turns at testing a youthful and unfamiliar Vincy Heat squad that is tipped to create a few major upsets.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines has jumped 27 places to 126th in the latest FIFA World Rankings. According to FIFA, this jump is attributed to the Senior Men’s National Team’s performance in its five matches played over the past month. These matches included two friendly internationals against the 2008 Digicel Caribbean Cup runners up, Grenada, along with the three matches played in the recently concluded group stage of the 2010 version of the said tournament.
At the beginning of this year, St. Vincent & the Grenadines was ranked 168th according to the FIFA World Rankings – just two positions higher than the lowest ranking (170th) ever achieved in the history of local football back in February 2004.
Vincy Heat’s latest jump in the FIFA rankings now places it at position number eight in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) and number sixteen in CONCACAF.
There are many like myself who would swiftly assert that even this recently improved ranking – a marked improvement over recent FIFA reports – is by no means reflective of what the current national football programme is truly capable of – this I would not defend.
On the other hand, there are those who have suggested that such an outlook is typical in countries with fledgling football programmes – this I would not refute.
It is my humble opinion that we have grown beyond defence – consequently, we have nothing to prove, but everything to show. The young Ghanians did not go to South Africa to prove points – they went to show exactly what they were made of.
So as ‘Vincy Heat’ moves into stage two and what is now being declared as the group of death (Group F) in the Digicel Caribbean Cup Qualifiers 2010, it is important for Coach Carrington, the young lads, and every football-crazed Vincentian to understand that this is our time to show the Caribbean and the world what we are truly made of.
At 126th in the world, things can seem quite dim even in the Tropics, as the spotlight is often concentrated on the higher ranked and seemingly more formidable teams in CONCACAF and beyond – their performances are highlighted, their players are marketed internationally, and their programmes inevitably attract greater funding. This apparent exclusion is even more exaggerated against the backdrop of what we are seeking to achieve as a small football-crazed nation.
There is a dire need for greater financial investments into the development of our players, programmes and facilities. Unfortunately, we perpetually find ways of muffing potential marketing opportunities for our local brand of football.
However, I am quite confident that even in the midst of Vincy football’s current woes with regards to technical direction and administration that our players are quite capable of stomping their authority on Group F to be hosted in Trinidad & Tobago, November 2 – 6.
Group F is clearly a story of an ominous battle between two teams on the rise and two perennial regional giants. The group comprises Guyana, Haiti, Trinidad & Tobago, and St. Vincent & the Grenadines – ranked 98th, 128th, 106th, and 126th respectively. St. Vincent & the Grenadines kicks of its stage two campaign against Trinidad & Tobago on November 2, at 7:00 pm at the Manny Ramjohn Stadium in Marabella, South Trinidad.
By: Jamal Browne
