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Calls for better organised ISSA U14, U16 competitions - Coaches say schedule is burdensome
January 16, 2025
Leading coaches of rural area Under-14 and Under-16 schools have criticised the timing and organisation of the competitions, saying it devalues the leagues.
Also, the coaches argue that the packed match schedule arranged by the Inter-Secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA) is burdensome and lacks consideration for their educational exploits.
ISSA's schoolboy football season officially ended on Tuesday with the all-island Under-14 and Under-16 finals at Glenmuir High School in Clarendon.
In the Under-16 matchup, STATHS, with two goals each from Shankeno Grant (29th, 52nd) and Christiana Brown (75th, 80+2), cruised to a 7-0 win over The Manning's School, while in the Under-14 final, Kingston College turned back hosts Glenmuir 3-0 on a hat-trick from Javaun Buckridge (28th, 45th, 70+1).
The junior competitions officially kicked off in October 2024 and attracted 93 rural schools and 42 urban schools.
Andrew Edwards, coach of Manchester High (U14), says though he is happy that the competition gives the youngsters the opportunity to play, he believes ISSA puts more effort into the organisation of the daCosta Cup and Manning Cup, rather than the junior competitions.
VERY LITTLE TIME
"I don't think that ISSA is very invested in the junior (U14 and U16) competitions in football. As early as June, July, you have a clear picture of what is happening with the daCosta Cup, Manning Cup, Champions Cup, etc. In October you still don't know what is happening with the U14 or U16. When it starts, you play Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Thursday, Monday or Wednesday, or Thursday again. There is very little time between games," Edwards told STAR Sports.
Manchester High, who were first-time finalists in the rural U14 final, were edged in the championship game through a late goal to be defeated 1-0 by Glenmuir High.
"Most significant for me is how they treat the fixtures and timing of it. The media coverage for junior football is almost zero and I believe it is something that can be done better," said Edwards, who expressed that the organisation of the tournament is poor.
"The fixtures come out very late and it is all over the place. You have a schedule for today at 1 p.m. and then you get a call at 9 a.m. that the game is at 11, or not being played again. However, this is not a knock against the current administration, this has been happening since I was going to school," he shared.
TOO MANY GAMES
Kevin Williams, coach of The Manning's School's U16 team, said based on ISSA's time frame to get things done, more needs to be put in place for the boys.
"We tend to have too many games in a week and it can be a burden on the young men, whether U14 or U16. I know they have a time frame to work with but I think it is too much work. If they have a time frame to work with, it means they have to put other things in place to make it more accommodating for these boys," Williams said.
Manning's are back-to-back champions of the rural U16 competition.
Williams also reasoned that each school in the the senior competitions have games (maximum) twice for the week, while in the junior competition there are three games per week, which can also affect the juniors' class time.
'EDUCATION COMES FIRST'
"When they (ISSA) are trying to meet their time frame, they tend to stack and pack too many games in one week so there is no recovery time for the boys. Education comes first and these games are not played on weekends. For a child to be missing school for three days out of the week, pending travelling for games back and forth, I think it is too much," he said.
Meanwhile, ISSA president Keith Wellington said though a discussion can be had about how to address the issues raised by coaches, some competitions will take priority over others.
PRIORITY
"In this case, the senior competition always takes priority over the junior competition. What I know is that we have a very packed schedule, that is ISSA on its own. We wait until the first round of the daCosta Cup and Manning Cup is played to play the junior competitions because schools don't have endless amount of resources," Wellington said.
Listing the challenges, Wellington explained, "One; in terms of facilities, you can't play two, three or four competitions at the same time. Two, the coaches themselves are the same coaches for Manning Cup or daCosta Cup and they don't want the scheduling to be on the same day as a U14 or U16.
"We have to give and take in terms of how the competition is organised," he said.
