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The passion

FeaturesThe passion

(Ed. NOTE: The editorial below was first published in the Amandala issue of Sunday, January 18, 2004)

Most healthy Belizean males love football, and those who can’t play the game, believe they know the game as well as, or better than, anybody else. So there is a passion involved with football, and the playing, refereeing and administration of it, which gives rise to disputes and arguments as a matter of course. Football is a macho thing.

This newspaper greets with enthusiasm the choice of Anthony “Garrincha” Adderley as the head coach of Belize’s national football selection. The one problem here is that Garrincha was chosen by the Football Federation of Belize, which is locked in a bitter power struggle with the Belize Premier Football League, and therefore he owes some loyalty to the FFB, which is Belize’s FIFA affiliate. At this point, then, Garrincha is a great choice, but he is compromised.

About three months ago, the publisher of this newspaper, who has coached, managed and sponsored football teams since 1972 (Diamond A, Charger, Kremandala Warriors and Grigamandala), proposed to the Prime Minister/then Minister of Sports, Hon. Said Musa, that he support a three-man commission, comprised of the publisher, Garrincha Adderley and Orange Walk’s Enrique Carballo, to sit with the FFB and the BPFL, and try to find common ground for a resolution of the impasse.

Mr. Musa said that there would be no problem with the BPFL, but he would have to speak to Dr. Bertie Chimilio, president of the FFB. In that subsequent conversation with the Prime Minister, Dr. Chimilio asked to meet “one on one” with the Amandala publisher. This meeting between Dr. Chimilio and Evan X Hyde took place at the King’s Room at the Princess Hotel.

Two weeks later, Dr. Chimilio asked that Mr. Hyde meet with members of his executive. This meeting took place at the Belize Biltmore Hotel. Dr. Chimilio was joined by Mr. Raymond Davis, Mr. Marlon Kuylen, Dr. Miguel Rosado and Mr. Bernaldino Pech. Evan X Hyde was accompanied by Jeff Scott.

The Biltmore Hotel conference marked the end of the unsuccessful Amandala initiative. After this there was no more communication with Dr. Chimilio.

Since that time, the National Sports Council, led by Belize City Mayor, Mr. David Fonseca, and Dr. Clara Cuellar, has moved into the position of mediator between the FFB and the BPFL.

But the dispute continues, and perhaps has reached the point where the National Sports Council will move against the FFB. If this happens, then FIFA will suspend Belize, and the World Cup matches between Canada and Belize, scheduled for June of this year, will be cancelled.

This is a manifestly bad situation for Belize football, but it derives from the passion all the interested parties feel. If Belize were to mobilize a totally unified effort for the matches in June, Belize would perform with dignity on the regional football state. But this is a big “if”.

Our concern at this stage, as is the concern of most Belizeans, is that the quarrel in football has disgraced us in Central America for some time and now threatens to disgrace us in North America (Canada). Football passion has damaged the national dignity we Belizeans have fought for more than a half century to consolidate.

If the National Sports Council decides to allow the FFB to continue its dominance, and there is no reconciliation between the FFB and the BPFL, then Garrincha will probably take untested players to Canada. We know Garrincha to be a confident and competent individual, but no one can turn coal into diamond overnight.

The fact that the FFB has never appointed a senior, impartial and nationally respected group of national selectors, betrays the fact that it is suffering from a touch of football megalomania. To give you an example of what we are talking about, a group of selectors this newspaper would recommend, would have to include Erwin Contreras, Marshall Nunez, head coach Garrincha, “Crucifick” Dawson, John Moody, Tony Zabaneh, Enrique Carballo, Ruben Morales Iglesias, Marvin Ottley and so on. All six districts should be represented. The selectors could be as many as 15 in number.

The national selectors would be more powerful, where the national selection is concerned, than both the FFB and the BPFL. That is what this newspaper recommends.

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