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Under 20 Debacle; Who is to Blame?
Sunday, 08 May 2011 22:41
(Gamsports) - Having heard all sides, or most part of the argument over the Under-20 debacle in South Africa, I feel it apt to ask the hard question; Just what or who is to blame
for our fast fading pedigree in youth football, the only competition we ever excelled-in and one which we placed all our hopes on..For a start is important to note that poor arrangement or the lack of one, in preparing this team, from the day they qualified to the their tedious flight to South Africa (Precious time wasted on shoddy and useless exchanges between the GFA and Ministry of Sports via the so-called Gold Committee) is key to our failure in the tourney.
But the fundamental reason to me is the widely under reported but apparent mistrust in relations between the Ministry and the GFA, otherwise why do you need to set up a body (Gambia For Gold) to keep the money and expenditure of the programmes of another independent body (GFA)? If, as it is evidently suggested, this move is aimed at ensuring transparency and good accounting of the public money that goes to finance GFA national teams programmes, then it also amounts to a public vote of no confidence on the GFA, as it goes to show that they cannot be trusted with managing funds for their own programmes. In that case why are they continuing to be there in the first place? Is it not plausible that the Ministry should just be bold enough and continue to dissolve the FA, argue its case to Fifa and march forward with fresh arrangements to put in place a new body?
That I think is the honest way out of this, compared to the precious time that is wasted whenever we set out to a tourney, as the GFA, typically incapable of good advance planning, draw plans for national team programmes that it has no funds to fund, or the Gold Committee waiting to approve or veto spending plans of the GFA.
Surely, this childish approach to running our footballs is inexcusable and even insulting to a nation that crave for glory, and hoping to reach the summit of the African football.
While it is commendable for the Ministry to devise credible fund raising means to finance national teams especially because the GFA is incapable of doing so, it can also be said that by putting up a bridge between the national team runners, The GFA and national team funds, the Ministry has inevitably invited delays, recriminations and in fact in some cases free GFA of any blames as they can always argue back by saying we did not have the money on time as tit is the case already. If the Ministry is shy of doing away with the GFA, then for God sake alternative ways could be found by directly involving the Gold committee in the basic planning of traveling and camping of teams example by putting planting n representative in the GFA committee responsible for such logistics to avoid delays and last minute planning that only brings failure.
Just imagine the team, which is the most important element in this programme, had to travel, around West and East Africa before finally arriving in South Africa, hours to their first match when there are daily direct flights from near by Dakar. This, added to last minute uncertainty over match bonuses and total lack of friendly matches, all go to make a mockery of just what kind of a football nation Gambia is claiming to be.
While it might be easy to blame the progressive decline of performance by the boys in the tourney to poor technique and badly play, it would be fair to present the overall disaster on those who prepare, fund and organized our participation in South Africa. How long do we have to live this nightmare? If this shoddy arrangement are not stopped and with our players spread all around Europe and America, one wonders when, and which route and flight they would get to reach Banjul soon enough to take on Burkina or get to Namibia in the remainder of the African Nations Cup qualifiers, which are must wins.
.And unless we change methods now, the most we can hope to achieve in our Gambia for Gold project, might be a bronze, even that could be in doubt.
If you agree or disagree, Have Your Say in the comment box here.
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Comments
This somehow shows a lack of continuity in the development process of youth talent and one wonders whether recent revelations/accusations of human smuggling at the GFA is not a factor in this.
Unlike Cameroun,Ghana, Nigeria or even Senegal,most of our young talents are too easily shipped off to USA & Scandanavian countries,where there is hardly any football. Consequently,th ey just fade away & 'die'.
I think more needs to be done to keep these youngsters in the national game so that they can compete at the highest club competition (CAF Championship)co nsistently, inorder to enhance and advertise our game, as well as attract attention from western agents.
Its about time that Gambia produces a Didier Drogba,Michael Essien,Elhadji Joof,Samuel e'to,etc.
In my view,the GFA should not be solely dependent on the ministry to carry out its functions. The funding from the ministry should only be supplementary and should not even constitute the bulk of their (GFA) finances. Football is a lucrative business and the GFA should be able to develop strategies to maximise earnings from the game;
The ministry should not interfere on how GFA manages it's funds & the Gold Committee is excess baggage. Get rid of it.
Let proper audit & control mechanism be put in place(if not already) and independent auditors be contracted to periodically do proper audit exercises.
Also, people with managerial skills,(not necessarily ex-footballers),pr eferably with business oriented education/background, should be allowed to manage the game.
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