Major Desmon Brown: National Stadium ready for VAR
Published:Sunday | January 23, 2022 | 12:09 AMDaniel Wheeler - Staff Reporter
WITH CONCACAF giving its final blessing for the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for the remainder of the region’s World Cup qualifiers, Independence Park Limited General Manager Major Desmon Brown says that not many alterations will be required for the system to be operational at the National Stadium in Kingston.
The regional body, in a statement on Wednesday, announced the approval of VAR to be in several competitions this year, including the remainder of the final round of qualifying. VAR will see its official introduction to the island on Thursday when Jamaica faces Mexico.
According to Brown, the equipment is at the Kingston Wharves awaiting transport but that no major adjustments will be needed for the facility to operate the system. Storage though, Major Brown says, will provide a challenge.
“They will be located by the broadcasting area. They will have a tent inside and a table by the third umpire for viewing. It won’t be anything significant. The biggest problem is that we have to find a space to store the stuff until such time. That is the biggest challenge for me right now,” Brown told The Sunday Gleaner.
RENOVATION PROJECT
Brown said that plans to properly incorporate the system would depend on the approval for the stadium renovation project. However, he says that his team is determined to provide the Concacaf officials with all the assistance they need for the system to function.
“If and when we do the refurbishing and improve the media facilities, then we can think about that. But, right now, there’s not much we can do. But, in our refurbishing, there is significant media upgrade in terms of the facilities,” Brown said.
“But the bottom line is that they will be accommodated and we will provide all the necessary requirements for the system to work.”
Concacaf Head of Communications Nicholas Noble, in a Sunday Gleaner interview on December 26, had said all eight participating nations had to be certified for the system to be used. With that standard met, Jamaica Football Federation president Michael Ricketts said he is optimistic about the stadium’s readiness.
“We, as it relates to the facility itself, have to make some adjustments, but we are hopeful that we would have had enough to make the process workable,” Ricketts said.
Brown says that the use of VAR is a milestone for the stadium in being able to elevate the technological standards of the facility.
“Yes, we are glad it’s here because it would mean that we are operating at a higher level of technical operations. It is not any more sophisticated than some of the equipment we already have in place for track and field,” Brown said.
“It’s just that it’s something that we haven’t seen before. But we are satisfied that we will deal with it.”