Expect more Jamaican refs at international events – Stewart
Published:Sunday | December 25, 2022 | 1:50 AMLivingston Scott - Gleaner Writer
RECENTLY, FIVE new Jamaican football officials were added to the FIFA list of international referees and assistants, and head of the referees’ department at the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), Victor Stewart, expects to see local officials parading their skills at the various international tournaments due in 2023.
Up until the end of October, Stewart said there were 13 officials on the FIFA list and that with the addition of assistants Kemar Gayle, Joshua Jackson, and Ricardo McKenzie and referees Christopher Mason and Okeito Nicholson, there are now 18.
“I say this without apology that the only countries in Concacaf that supersede us in terms of numbers and quality would be Mexico, the USA, and Canada.
“This speaks volumes for our referees, but yet we are not totally satisfied. We still want more. We want our people out there to matriculate into senior competitions, FIFA and Concacaf tournaments.
HIGHER LEVEL
“They have been out on the circuit, and we want to continue this and take it to a higher level,” he said.
He said the ultimate goal was to see local referees at the World Cup but that this process took time.
“We continue to supply referees to the FIFA list based on the performances on the local circuit and their development and capabilities.
“While we are happy, we are still not satisfied because we know we have the capability to do much more,” he said.
A number of persons are preparing for the Women’s World Cup in Australia, the Concacaf Gold Cup, FIFA youth tournaments, and Concacaf Champions League, but those names will not be made public before FIFA officially publishes their lists.
“2023 will be a serious year for the amount of competitions we will have in the region, and all our FIFA referees will be subjected to assignments across the region,” said Stewart.
He added that there was a great shortfall in the required number of officials to supply the demand locally and revealed that they would embark on an aggressive recruitment drive to fill this void.
“Most officials we currently have are from tertiary institutions, G.C. Foster, Mico, and others.
“We have targeted and we are in discussions with these institutions. So the major thrust for next year is to launch programmes that will increase the number of referees.
“When we have more numbers, it will lead to better performances because it will cut out complacency and fatigue.
“The shortage of referees is a recurring problem for the last couple of years. We are behind the eight ball in terms of rolling out some programmes, but we are not going to stay behind the eight ball. We will make a concerted effort to move forward.”