| A few weeks ago, I went out for a beer with a few | | | | ball-hogging nature would be appeased. Short passes |
| friends. We visited an Irish pub and, of course, there | | | | and adept ball control always seemed to be the |
| was soccer on the tube. Our discussions eventually | | | | priority. This certainly leads to each player feeling |
| led us back to, shockingly, soccer. We made a | | | | involved in the games, but what it doesn't lead to is |
| conversational foray into Concacaf qualifying and | | | | shots, goals, or victories. |
| discussed who the most likely teams to qualify for it | | | | Although I would be willing to bet decent money that |
| were. | | | | Jamaica is consistently outshot and outfouled by |
| One of the gang was a Jamaican fellow, a soccer | | | | opponents, I admit that this argument can be |
| fan, and a despairing Jamaican national team fan. I | | | | punched full of holes due to lack of empirical |
| admitted him to him my constant frustration with the | | | | evidence. For the life of me, I couldn't find shot |
| Jamaican National Team. I've never watched Jamaica | | | | statistics for Jamaica's games in the last two years |
| play a soccer game without screaming at the TV | | | | -please email me if you can find these stats. |
| "SHOOT THE BALL! SHOOT IT! STOP PASSING! | | | | However, I have a few things to support my |
| SHOOOOOOOOOT!" I learned that night that I'm not | | | | arguments. First, my own eyes. Jamaica never seems |
| the only one who feels that way. | | | | to take shots and passes up opportunities that |
| We discussed the reasons for Jamaica's lack of | | | | present themselves. The soccer is pretty, the |
| success the last 10 years. Despite their enjoyable and | | | | passing is gorgeous, but it ends up looking like a poor |
| skilled brand of soccer, Jamaica hasn't appeared in | | | | man's Brasil. |
| the World Cup since 1998 and failed to advance past | | | | Second, I have the results from Jamaica's last couple |
| Caribbean Cup qualifying most recently - leading to | | | | of years of play. Now, it's vaguely possible that |
| their loud absence from the 2007 Gold Cup. While | | | | Jamaica is taking 100 shots a game amd converting |
| certainly there are socioeconomic factors at play and | | | | none of them, but that's about as likely as Carlos |
| the fact that Jamaica's national side isn't overly | | | | Ruiz going a game without diving. |
| well-funded and has a paucity of soccer players | | | | In 2006, Jamaica played 6 international friendlies, only |
| playing their club soccer outside of Jamaica, there's | | | | managing to win one while allowing 14 goals |
| something else amiss. | | | | compared to a paltry total of 5 scored. In 2007, over |
| The theory proposed by my Jamaican companion at | | | | a stretch of 9 friendlies, Jamaica chalked up 3 wins |
| the bar was that Jamaica regards soccer as a | | | | and 10 goals, while conceeding 17 goals and 5 losses. |
| "gentleman's game". What he meant by this can be | | | | Hardly the two year record of a team ready for the |
| simplified to mean that the Jamaican side seems to | | | | World Cup. |
| feel obligated to have every player participate in | | | | With the rehiring of Rene Simoes amd some up and |
| every possession and also that the Jamaican defense | | | | coming young strikers in the players pool like Shelton |
| allows the opposition an opportunity to manuever | | | | and Bryan, Jamaica seems to think they have a lot |
| with the ball. In short, each player gets a fair chance | | | | of momentum heading towards qualifying than in the |
| with the ball. In terms of a code of honor, it's | | | | last ten years. |
| comparable to tossing an unarmed man a weapon | | | | I'm certainly not going to discount them totally at this |
| before engaging in combat. | | | | stage. Jamaica has talent and drive going for them. |
| This approach leads to creative passing and | | | | However, until they embrace a ballhog, until they |
| attractive soccer. Every time I've played soccer with | | | | learn to stop passing the ball and take a few shots, |
| Jamaican players, I could rest assured that my | | | | they won't qualify for the World Cup. |