Former national footballers take a swipe at non-functioning BFA, suggest office be closed

Nov 04, 2013 Sports

By Samuel Whyte
Former national players Neil ‘Grizzly’ Humphrey and Ike Bowry among others have come out hard against the defunct Berbice Football Association (BFA).

Neil Humphrey (left) and Ike Bowry (right) pose with some of their charges at the end of a recent tournament.

The players, who are members of the Hearts of Oak Masters Football Club (HOMFC) of Berbice, which arguably is the most active football organization in Guyana, were speaking on the eve of the presentation and awards ceremony of the recently concluded HOMFC Inter Ward football competition in Berbice.
Humphrey a member of the well-known Humphrey family that represented Guyana in a number of sports discipline including, athletics, basketball and lawn tennis and Bowry, stated that they have thrown cold water on what is happening with football in Berbice.
The former national players stated that due to the dormancy of the Berbice Football Association (BFA) their organisation, which is made up of a number of former national ball weavers the likes of Adrian and Sherwin Forde, Phillip Carrington, Sam Jones, Ike Bowry and the Alphonso siblings among others, are doing their utmost to keep the game active in the Ancient County.
They took a swipe at the BFA for not doing anything to help the game in Berbice.
“The organization is dormant and is only interested in fighting and dominance. People are only going and coming and talking, but nothing doing,” the former national ball weavers stated.
“The BFA has not organised a proper competition for the past six years and no proper financial statement was presented, yet they occupy an office with staff. A waste of financial resources,” Humphrey retorted.
What is more alarming the men pointed out, is that the former president of the BFA, Keith O’Jeer somehow found himself as an executive member of the Guyana Football Federation. He immediately resigned from the BFA after that appointment.
They suggested that the BFA office should be officially closed and the funds channeled to doing something tangible, like helping the many underprivileged youths in the county.
They also want former BFA president, now GFF senior executive member, Keith O’Jeer, to explain what happened to the association’s funds during his tenure among other things.
The HOMFC is presently conducting the second Annual Wilber Hope Memorial Inter School football, tournament. The organization is also presently training a number of teachers who are presently doing Physical Education at their various schools in refereeing and coaching, conducting youth camps and has a nursery among other football related activities.