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Arnett looking to avoid burnout while navigating Concacaf championship, JPL
August 16, 2024
Arnett Gardens Football Club's head coach, Xavier Gilbert, says it is important that they manoeuvre the early stages of the Concacaf Caribbean Club Championship (CCC) properly to prevent a burnout in the latter phase of the Jamaica Premier League (JPL).
The Corporate Area team started its season unusually early this year due to their participation in the Concacaf Caribbean Shield during July and early August.
After winning that competition to claim the club's first international trophy, the 'Junglists' advanced to the CCC, which begins next Tuesday.
Gilbert admits that this is a 'tricky' period for his team, and how they manage themselves over the next month will be key.
"We took a couple days off and resumed training last Thursday. And now the time is short, and we still have to be looking long term. So there has to be a mixture of how we train and what we do, because it's still early preseason," Gilbert commented.
"So the reality is, we are mixing strength work with regular sessions, and you have to be tapering things because you are in competition.
"So this period is very tricky. We have to manoeuvre it very properly, because it is not like we have a large squad where some can play the league (JPL) and some can play the Caribbean championship, because they will run concurrent," he pointed.
He noted that playing in two high-level competitions at the same time will not be easy to navigate.
"We have to see how we navigate it, and the next 30 days is going to be a real test. This will probably be the most difficult part. So the next 30 days is critical.
"We will have about four games in the Caribbean Club Championship in September. But once we navigate that properly, it will set us up nicely heading into the JPL season, barring that we do not get any injuries. So it is a critical 30 days," he emphasised.
By way of comparison, Gilbert pointed to the struggles of Harbour View and Dunbeholden in the JPL last season when they were also competing in the CCC.
"We don't want to go through what Dunbeholden and Harbour View went through last season. The tricky thing is to make sure you manage the players and navigate the situations," he stated.
"You have to make sure they get time to rest and recover. But it will boil down to how well we manage the condition of the players. We want to go far in the Concacaf Champions Cup, and we want to finish in the top six of the Premier League," he stated.
Meanwhile, the Trench Town club has added former Tivoli Gardens FC full back Aston Lewis to their roster, along with centre half Alwin Straun and goalkeeper Rojay Williams of Vere.
Gilbert said they are looking to add more quality to strengthen their squad for the season.
"We have three additions, and we hope that qualifying for the Concacaf Caribbean Club Championship will entice players who can fit into what we are doing. So we are open to looking at some options and we hope to get back a few more players before the season starts," the head coach assessed.
"We always want to do better, and that is our objective. We are not making any promises, but we will be giving of our best."
