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Even the most vocal critic would have to concede
By Rawle Welch
Now that we are two days away from the conclusion of another edition of the Annual Digicel Nationwide Schools Football Championship, even the most vocal critic would have to concede that the event has assumed a lofty status on the local sports calendar.
In three short years, the Organisers have been able to gradually eliminate many of the initial hiccups that had plagued the competition at the start and have now covered a significant part of the journey which is to assisting in the development of local football, while also serving as a channel to expose our youths to the geography
Part of the crowd at the Kamarang/Warawatta Sports Ground, Upper Mazaruni witnessing the Waramadong vs Charity game.
and diverse ways of life of our six races.
The Championship which begun in 2011 saw just over 120 schools registered to participate and that figure was exceeded the following year when close to 140 schools took to the field and even that total was surpassed this year with nearly 160 educational institutions taking to the starting blocks.
Since that time, almost every other feature of the Championship has followed suit with the most significant being the involvement of the media thanks to the wisdom of the Organisers, who must have felt that this medium was integral to the event’s success.
Another strategic move that the Company made was to get coaches and former players involved in improving the tactical and technical aspects of the tournament aimed directly at developing the general standard of the competition and to this end teams, teachers and officials were able to benefit from the expertise of accredited personnel and even before its conclusion, the common feedback is that in most areas there are improvements.
Digicel has now set the stage for the fortunes of Guyana’s football to change and if what the Company is doing is augmented by all the relevant stakeholders then this country’s quest to once again become a force to be reckon with within the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) and even the Confederations of North, Central American & Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF).
There is no doubt that what the Company has done is unprecedented, no other entity in recent memory has dared to take on the logistical challenge of involving all ten regions in one single tournament, but Digicel, despite the vastness of the country combined with all the other exigencies made a decision to accept the challenge.
This year has also witnessed a number of other positives, but perhaps the most noteworthy of them all is the unmistakable presence and support of parents, always a key component for success at the junior level.
Over the past two years, this critical support was seen largely from teams out of Georgetown and Region 4, but this year has witnessed an increase in parental presence and spectator turnout, especially among those who were previously absent.
There is no doubt that the popularity of the tournament has been amplified and all the signs point to an even bigger competition come next year. Teachers of the schools have vowed to prepare much earlier and this could lead to further improvement in the level of play, an exciting impression about the sport’s future here.
The Guyana Football Federation, the various Associations, Clubs, Ministries of Education and Sport have received this gift on a platter and it is now up to them to utilise it to the best of their respective abilities.
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