• Business
  • Education
  • General
  • Social
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Jamaica Says…
  • About Factions
Wednesday, August 10, 2022
Factions
No Result
View All Result
  • Business
  • Education
  • General
  • Social
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Jamaica Says…
  • About Factions
  • Business
  • Education
  • General
  • Social
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Jamaica Says…
  • About Factions
No Result
View All Result
Factions
No Result
View All Result
Home

Is the USL and MLS the Better Route for Jamaican Footballers?

Gregory Bryce by Gregory Bryce
September 4, 2020
in Sports
0
Is the USL and MLS the Better Route for Jamaican Footballers?
0
SHARES
492
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
Gregory Bryce

By Gregory Bryce

Over the last few days, I’ve sat back and watched as Jamaica played second fiddle to England, yet again, in recruiting players for their national team. With FIFA’s decision to cancel all international match dates, excluding the teams from Europe, the Reggae Boyz will be inactive for the time being, and unable to field a team open to potential recruits. Leeds United player, Kalvin Phillips, seemed a realistic possibility for the Reggae Boyz as Phillips had spoken out on his willingness to represent Jamaica. However, that door has been shut as the 24-year-old midfielder has accepted England’s offer and is expected to play in their Nation’s League fixture tomorrow. Arsenal’s Ainsley Maitland-Niles was another player on the Jamaica Football Federation’s (JFF) radar but he (along with the even less realistic prospect of Mason Greenwood) has also been called up to the England squad in the last few days.

READ ALSO

Edwin Allen in 7th Heaven; JC Dethrones KC

Champs Alert: Athletes to Watch at Champs 2021

This is not the first, nor second, and undoubtedly, not the last time that we’ve found ourselves in this situation but at some point, or another, there has to be some drastic change in how we approach our scouting network. If Jamaica is to further advance up the FIFA rankings and ultimately stake its place on the global stage, we must set up a reliable system of supplying young talent to integrate into our national setup.

And this is where I draw your attention to the growing Jamaican representation in the Major League Soccer (MLS) and United Soccer League (USL) in America.

I have always been aware that the MLS and USL have been home to much of the country’s football talent, but it is only recently have I become fully aware of the extent to which these two leagues have served as development leagues for this generation of Jamaican players.

In a recent article where the USL made a list of the top 10 Caribbean-born players in the league, Jamaica made up a staggering 6 of the 10 players featured – with an additional three players making the honorable mentions list.

Former Jamaica College standout, Junior Flemmings, topped the list of players, accompanied by Kenardo Forbes, Devon Williams, Kevon Lambert, Neco Brett and Dane Kelly to round off the top 10. Nicque Daley, Sean McFarlane and Romario Williams made up the honorable mentions.

Alongside that, it is the Jamaican duo of Dane Kelly and Kenardo Forbes who hold the records for the USL’s all-time top goal scorer and assists respectively.

If some of these names seem familiar to you, they should, as the trio of Flemmings, Lambert and Devon Williams were part of the most recent Gold Cup squad, with the remaining players having been selected for national duty – whether it had been as junior or senior representative.

Jamaica’s influence does not end there, however, with the Reggae Boyz having a rich history with the MLS competition. Current captain Andre Blake is currently playing in the league with his club, Philadelphia Union. Also applying their trade in the MLS are Alvas Powell, Cory Burke, Oneil Fisher and Darren Mattocks.

All of these players have at one point, been involved with the Reggae Boyz programme, and it is a clear indicator that the USL and MLS are a common first step that many of our players take to experience the next level of football.

This does not mean, however, that the American leagues are the best destination for our players. In fact, national team manager, Roy Simpson, has been noted for speaking against the quality of the USL league in an interview earlier this year. While Simpson thinks that the increase of Jamaican players doing well in these leagues (particularly in the USL) is a positive for the national team, he says that it should serve as a stepping stone to more reputable leagues.

“The USL is a stepping stone for these players to move forward. The fact that their dominance is now evident suggests that they are making themselves more marketable. Their consistency is a good indicator that they are taking more seriously the programme we indicated to them. Hopefully, from these performances we can see them breaking into the bigger leagues,” Simpson said in an interview with the Gleaner.

And I can agree with what Simpson proposes. The USL and MLS do offer our players their first experience at international football, but should Jamaica hope to improve our style of play, we will need players who are more well versed in a higher level of professional football found mostly in Europe.

European club football, Simpson believes, should be the aspiration of Jamaican footballers, and if we can achieve this on a regular basis, our national team will no doubt improve immensely from the surplus of talent.

Gregory Bryce is a freelance sports journalist.

Tags: JFFMLSReggae BoyzULS

Related Posts

Edwin Allen in 7th Heaven; JC Dethrones KC
Sports

Edwin Allen in 7th Heaven; JC Dethrones KC

May 21, 2021
197
Champs Alert: Athletes to Watch at Champs 2021
Sports

Champs Alert: Athletes to Watch at Champs 2021

May 12, 2021
209
Time to Respect our ‘Girlz’
Sports

Man City’s Interest in Khadija Shaw

May 4, 2021
231
The Rise and Fall of the European Super League
Sports

The Rise and Fall of the European Super League

April 26, 2021
143
The Show Must Go On?
General

The Chronicles of COVID: Japan, Lockdowns and the Tokyo Olympics

April 18, 2021
69
Will Champs Be Cancelled for a Second Year in a Row?
Sports

Will Champs Be Cancelled for a Second Year in a Row?

April 14, 2021
162
Alia Atkinson: Our Queen of the Pool
Sports

Alia Atkinson: Our Queen of the Pool

April 5, 2021
236
Jamaica vs USA: Match Review
Sports

Jamaica vs USA: Match Review

March 26, 2021
95
JFF Names 24-Man Squad for Saudi Arabia Fixtures
Sports

Reggae Boyz Biting the Bullet

March 19, 2021
88
Next Post
All Hands on Deck for Student-Athletes

All Hands on Deck for Student-Athletes

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

POPULAR POSTS

Twisted Logic… Politics Before Health?

Twisted Logic… Politics Before Health?

September 1, 2020
538
Is the USL and MLS the Better Route for Jamaican Footballers?

Is the USL and MLS the Better Route for Jamaican Footballers?

September 4, 2020
492
Renting in Kingston

Renting in Kingston

September 1, 2020
443
Outsourced or Homegrown? Jamaica’s Football Dilemma

Outsourced or Homegrown? Jamaica’s Football Dilemma

August 7, 2020
441
2020 General Election – Election With A Difference

2020 General Election – Election With A Difference

August 31, 2020
428

Factions

Factions is a Jamaican news commentary online platform in which ordinary Jamaicans can comment on and analyze current local news. Share your thoughts.

Follow us

Categories

Business         Education         Religion

General           Social                 Politics

Sports

Recent Posts

  • Factions Data Privacy Policy
  • The Undervalued Student Opinion
  • Edwin Allen in 7th Heaven; JC Dethrones KC
  • Champs Alert: Athletes to Watch at Champs 2021
  • Business
  • Education
  • General
  • Social
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Jamaica Says…
  • About Factions

© 2021 Factions JA.

No Result
View All Result
  • Business
  • Education
  • General
  • Social
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Jamaica Says…
  • About Factions

© 2021 Factions JA.

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Share your thoughts. Sign up to create a post.

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.

SAVE & ACCEPT