“Better Guyana play our home games away from home”

– Golden Jaguars Head Coach Jamaal Shabazz

There was something awfully disconcerting about the Golden Jaguars’ response to their 3-2 victory over the Bahamas on Tuesday night. There were taps on the back, handshakes, and a smirk here or there, but it was not the expected reaction from a team that had just secured a full 6 points in their first two games of the CONCACAF Nations League 2023/2024.
Maybe it was because the senior men’s national football team had felt they could have beaten their opponents by a much larger margin, or maybe it was the discomfort they had to endure in order to churn out that win.

While seeing is often regarded as believing, there were no assumptions to be made about the pitch at the National Track and Field Center at Leonora, West Coast Demerara (WCD). After all, it was deemed suitable for international football. But, as we later learnt, it was not to the liking of either team on the field.
Head Coach of the Golden Jaguars, Jamaal Shabazz, was so moved by the situation that he could not bring himself to focus on an assessment of the win when addressing the media after the 90-minute game was over. Foremost on his mind was the beige-coloured grass pitch that had seemingly made it difficult for his team to execute.
“Well, very happy for the win, putting us 6 points. Ummm, I would have preferred to play on another ground in another country, and give up our home advantage for a good pitch for our players to play on. We must think about facilities, this was a horrible pitch, and I think it solely affected the way we wanted to play.
“The job of the player is to play. The job of the coach is to try create a team that could win and do the best. Whose job is it for us to have a proper facility to play?” The Head Coach boldly enquired when probed on his thoughts about Tuesday night’s game.

Of course, Shabazz has never been one to shy away from speaking his mind during his various stints at the helm of the national team, and he continued to do just that, after highlighting the issue. He declared, “This is terrible! This is totally unacceptable! And I’d prefer until we get better facilities, better Guyana play our home game away from home.”
Asked whether assumption can be made that the state of the surface had contributed to the performance, or lack thereof, of the Golden Jaguars, Shabazz responded, “Every player struggled! Every player complained! This is not what a coach would like to be talking about at the end of a game.
“Of course, it’s easy to say we barely win 3-2 against Bahamas! Okay! You can write that, but what’s the reality? Would you guys go on the pitch?”
Drawing comparison to their most recent outing, wherein the team defeated Antigua 5-1, Shabazz rated the local pitch below par.
“We just come from playing Antigua on a beautiful ground in hot conditions, but you know what, we were able to play football, and one of the fundamental things for playing football is a football pitch, and we don’t have that. And that’s so unfortunate,” he declared.
“The blame game could start from now, it’s not my business! I dream of the day when Guyana would have a proper surface to play football on. I cannot answer anything else about football, because I didn’t think that much football was played on this surface. I’m so sorry!” a visibly disappointed Shabazz added. (Jemima Holmes)