Busby Jr eyes 2021 camp for Girlz

Head coach of the national senior women’s football team, Hubert Busby Jr, said the European camp that was being planned for the team before the end of the year does not seem likely until early in 2021.

Busby Jr explained that the coronavirus pandemic and the varying travel restrictions from country to country made it much more difficult to organise a camp.

Nevertheless, the coach noted that they are continuing to search for opportunities to assemble the squad in order to evaluate players and implement strategies.

“It is still fluid and we are still investigating, but the challenge isn’t the time frame. The challenge is getting to Europe-based players on the COVID-19 situation. So every day goes by it looks more unlikely for this calendar year, so we are looking at early next year,” Busby Jr said.

“The main obstacle is the restrictions on players coming in and out of different countries, with each country having their own COVID-19 safety stipulations and quarantine. This makes it a lot more problematic in terms of travel. We are just looking at the best option of what we can do,” added Busby Jr.

“We want to do something, we just don’t know what that is just yet or when it will take place due to some of the restrictions. We just have to continue to work towards the common goal of getting back on the field together, but obviously, we have some challenges to overcome,” he pointed out.

EVALUATING PLAYERS

The majority of the players on Busby Jr’s list are based in Europe or the United States, and the coaching staff continue to keep a close eye on all the players.

“We have been able to monitor their games live on TV, on recordings or other platforms and it has been very positive. So even though we are not together, monitoring their form is something that myself and the staff have been doing, as well as monitoring players who have shown an interest to play for Jamaica,” Busby Jr disclosed.

The coach outlines that the long-term goal of the camp is geared towards organising World Cup preparation; however, the short-term goal, he underlined, is to get a chance to evaluate the players and introduce them to their plans.

“It is more about evaluation and implementation. To see where players are and to make sure our playing method and philosophy are explained. So that model is really the focus of what that next camp would be; putting in the method and philosophy of how we want to get to the World Cup,” he said.

“We are diligent and still doing our work to see what we can do. It is not a lack of looking into opportunities, it’s just the travelling and getting secure bubble-like conditions; that is obviously the key to making it work,” Busby Jr said.

livingston.scott@gleanerjm.com