Ultimatum! - Tallawahs threaten to pull up stumps unless Government agrees partnership

Tallawahs owner Krishna 'Kris' Persaud said he still hopes to keep the franchise based in Jamaica but is prepared to move to another Caribbean territory if a partnership cannot be agreed upon with the Government.

Tallawahs Chief Executive Officer Jeff Miller had previously told The Gleaner that the reason for playing three of its five home games in the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill, Florida, was that the franchise had not received enough financial backing from the Government.

Persaud affirms Miller's position, saying that he felt the Government had shown what he describes as "no willingness" to come to an amicable agreement like other Caribbean governments have forged with their respective franchises.

GOV'T PARTNERSHIP NEEDED

"We need a creative partnership with the Jamaican Government," Persaud told The Gleaner. "They said, 'We will have something for you in a week, or in a couple weeks,' but that has been the mantra for over a year and a half, since 2017.

"We had come to Florida because our ticket pricing is much better here," he said. "We get support from the tourist board here. They recognise and appreciate the economic benefit that the county (Broward) receives."

It cost Persaud's Florida-based Worldwide Sports Management Group (WSMG) $7 million to host the three games in Lauderhill, while a further $10 million was spent hosting both games played at Sabina Park in Kingston.

But Persaud said that Lauderhill cannot be used as an enduring business plan and that wherever the team is based in the future will be their home for the long term.

"We have other islands that need the economic impact; that ties in with their tourist board more than Jamaica, for now," he said. "Our economic studies show that for the past four years, Jamaica received US$42 million in economic impact (how much was actually spent to host games here).

"The reasons might be valid. Some say there is a restraint from the IMF (International Monetary Fund), and others say it is a private business and you have to take care of your own expense. To the latter, the economic model for any franchise is that there is economic impact to the local economy and the Government and that they forge some sort of sponsoring partnership to where the business becomes viable. We're not having that."

Persaud describes the US$35,000 (J$4.5 million) the team received from the Government in 2017 as a pittance.

AFFECTED ATMOSPHERE

The Tallawahs lost all three CPL games in Florida, with many, including team captain AndrÈ Russell, blasting the decision to play in front of an audience which comprised of fans from the West Indies diaspora, not limited to Jamaicans. It was said that this affected the atmosphere and vocal support for the Jamaicans.

"Ideally, we want all Tallawahs games to be played in Jamaica and rooted in Kingston and Trelawny," Persaud said. "Ideally, we don't want what happened last year to happen again this year. We would prefer to relocate the team to some other island and create a new fan base there."

This would mean that the name 'Tallawahs' would be dropped for one more suited to that territory's culture.

Persaud said that should WSMG be put in this position where they have to relocate, he does not anticipate results suffering as they did in Lauderhill last season or a slow fan base growth, regardless of where the team ends up in the Caribbean. He, however, would not be drawn on what this would mean for unearthing young players from the possible new territory, as was done by the team in Jamaica. He instead stressed that the plan is still to stay in Jamaica.