What now for the Emerald Boys?

It has been a monumental nine months for Montserratian football. Firstly, last October there was the nation’s first participation in the Caribbean Cup for five years after missing the previous two tournaments in 2007 and 2008. Although results didn’t go as hoped for with three successive defeats to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados and Saint Kitts and Nevis, the team were back playing on the world stage again. More recently, Kenny Dyer’s men had the honour of kicking-off qualification for the 2014 World Cup and although the games against Belize ultimately ended in defeat, coach Dyer has been able to bring in some new and exciting young talent, including captain Anthony Griffith, midfielder Alex Dyer and goal-scoring sensation Jaylee Hodgson. So, where does the team go from here? The qualifying dates for the 2012 Caribbean Championship Finals in Antigua and Barbuda next June/July, have yet to be announced, meaning that when exactly the Emerald Boys will play again is uncertain. This current team has real potential to make a significant impact in world football. The impressive levels of play, team spirit and camaraderie that have been built in recent months, need to be maintained. This can only be done through playing friendly matches, but the fact is that Montserrat has only ever played one full international friendly, the 2002 ‘Other Final’ in Bhutan. It is all, of course, a question of logistics. Montserrat’s players are spread all over the world - the UK, Ireland, Australia and the United States - and so getting them altogether is a problem. However, with the majority being based in the UK, perhaps there is the possibility of playing a friendly there. More significantly, Montserrat has its own superb facility, the Blakes Estate Stadium. Noted for its excellent playing surface, the stadium would have been used for the recent home tie against Belize had the dressing rooms been ready. Staging a friendly international there would be a wonderful occasion for the island and its football. What about a return fixture against Bhutan?!

On June 30th 2002, the day of the World Cup Final in Yokohama, Japan between Brazil and Germany, the two lowest-ranked nations within FIFA, Bhutan and Montserrat, met in Thimphu, the capital city of the Himalayan kingdom. The match was the idea of Dutch filmmaker, Johann Kramer. Below is a link to a trailer for the documentary film that he produced, ‘The Other Final.’

'The Other Final' trailer

Montserrat knocked out of World Cup

Montserrat were eliminated from the 2014 World Cup with their heads held high following a 1-3 defeat by Belize in their preliminary round, second leg qualifier in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. From the first game last month which Belize won 5-2, Montserratian coach Kenny Dyer made five changes, bringing in goalkeeper Jermaine Sweeney as well as Clifford Joseph, Calvin Petrie, Nyron Dyer and Alexander Bramble. However, he was only able to name four substitutes. Daniel Jimenez opened the scoring for the Belizeans in the 24th minute, but Jaylee Hodgson equalised on the hour, becoming Montserrat’s leading goalscorer of all-time in the process. However, Belize restored their advantage almost immediately through hat-trick hero from the first leg, Deon McCauley, and threatened to run away with the tie when Luis Mendez netted another two minutes later. However, the Montserrat team held firm and there were no further goals scored, giving Belize an 8-3 aggregate win.

Montserrat team: Jermaine Sweeney, Clifford Joseph, Calvin Petrie, Kendall Allen, Nyron Dyer, (sub: Dale Lee 62mins) Anthony Griffith (captain), Darryl Roach, Jaylee Hodgson, Alexander Bramble, (sub: Denoy Campbell 62 mins) Alex Dyer, Leovan O’Garro.
Subs not used: Linbert Wright and Stanford Jarrett.

Goals from the match

Second leg on Sunday

The game is now taking place this Sunday (July 17th) at the Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula, Honduras

Belize tie back on

The Football Federation of Belize (FFB) has had its suspension provisionally lifted until August 15th by FIFA’s emergency committee. This action means that the second leg of Montserrat’s 2014 World Cup preliminary qualifying tie with the Central American nation can now take place. The game must now be played before July 17th outside of Belize, in order to avoid the problems with Belizean authorities not being able to provide security assurances which caused the original tie, on June 19th, to be postponed. If the problems between the FFB and its country’s authorities cannot be solved by August 15th, the Federation’s suspension will be reinstated. The first match, played in Trinidad, was won 5-2 by Belize.