Dear Editor,
Being a realist, it came as no surprise to me that the nation’s Futsal Football Team was dumped from the CFU 2016 Futsal Championship in Cuba. Competing in the group stage alongside traditional regional powerhouse Trinidad & Tobago, Curacao and Antigua & Barbuda, a 2-5 trouncing was the final result against the Dutch lineup, followed by the twin island republic prevailing 4-3 and a consolation 3-2 win over the Antiguans. From the three matches played, Guyana scored 8 goals and conceded 11 for a goal difference of -3, and an average of 2.2 goals per match.
Editor, to say that I am disappointed with the outcome of the final result, would be a gross understatement. Suffice it to say that with a National Futsal Association in place some semblance of improvement should have been evident. And there should be no excuses, such as time constraints. Rather answers to the following questions should be provided:
- i) When was the GFF informed of the Futsal qualifying leg?
- ii) Was any attempt made to include the Futsal Association in its deliberations?
iii) Given that there had been no participation in a regional Futsal tournament for a period of almost 8 years, is this still included in the GFF’s annual calendar of activities?
- iv) What were the criteria for selection, in the absence of local tournaments?
Finally, under a new dispensation at the GFF in November last year and the affiliation of the National Futsal Association, at least 2 teams from 8 associations could have converged at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall over 3 weekends for a competition. At the conclusion, a proper squad could have been selected for training. Band aid solutions and stop-gap measures are totally unacceptable this time around, lest Guyana continue to go down as ‘also rans.’ In 2008, the local lineup was the best 4th placed team in the CFU.
Meanwhile, my heartiest congratulations to the Beach Soccer Association for their insight and vision in organizing a competition and inviting a foreign coach to observe and impart his knowledge on the technical aspects of the game.
Yours faithfully,
Lester Sealey
