HEFEI, China — Jamaica’s already cropped team to face China in a friendly international at the Hefei Sports Centre here tomorrow has suffered yet another blow.

Midfielder Jason Morrison has confirmed in an e-mail correspondence to team officials on Sunday that he will not be making the trip “as I have sustained a shoulder injury” in a game for his Norway-based club Aalesund FK on the weekend.

“I’m scheduled to go to hospital in the morning (yesterday) to have a test on it, so I won’t be able to make the trip tomorrow (Tuesday),” said the e-mail message from Morrison to team manager Roy Simpson, which the Observer was able to obtain a copy of.

In their efforts to verify the validity of Morrison’s injury claim, the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) requested a medical report from the Scandinavian club, which it received yesterday in Norwegian from the club’s medical co-ordinator, Bjorn Erik Melland.

While the medical report was in the Norwegian language, Melland’s explanation of the injury was presented in near perfect English.

“During and after the game yesterday (Sunday) Jason got intense pain in his left shoulder. He was not able to sleep on his left side during the night. In the morning he was not able to flex and abduct his left shoulder,” the note from Melland’s e-mail to the JFF stated.

Another Overseas-based player and selectee for the China engagement, Toronto FC’s Ryan Johnson, also pulled out of the side, with an injury complaint, even as he appeared for his team in a MLS match against DC United on Saturday where he played 90 minutes.

“Please accept this e-mail as confirmation that Ryan Johnson suffered an ankle sprain during the second half of our midweek game in Nicaragua. He was substituted as a precaution and received medical treatment for the next few days leading up to tonight’s (Saturday’s) game vs DC United. He participated in tonight’s game and complained of pain and currently has swelling and decreased strength. It is our medical recommendation that Ryan stay home to receive on-going treatment for this injury as extended travel would only hinder his recovery,” was the explanation via e-mail by the Canadian club’s head athletic therapist, Carmelo Lobue.

Those late withdrawals, plus many others due to injuries and various other factors, have put Jamaica in an awkward position to field “a full squad” for the game.

The JFF claims that some of the reasons given for the player withdrawals fly far from being “satisfactory”, to say the least.

“We have lost a number of players due to injuries sustained from representing their respective clubs. Two such occurred over the past 48 hours and others before. We also lost players to circumstances less than satisfactory to the JFF,” said team manager Roy Simpson, with under 48 hours before kick off.

The compounded difficulties getting a full squad to China for the match, have seen only nine local-based players in camp at press time. There is still hope that Valerenga FC’s Luton Shelton, Syrianska FC’s Dwayne Miller, SK Brann’s Rodolph Austin and Nybergsund IL’s Damion Williams will be able to override challenges securing visas to arrive on time for kick off.

All four are scheduled to arrive in this eastern Chinese city today and not yesterday as previously reported, and the proverbial fingers will be kept crossed “for the best”.

Captain Shavar Thomas of Kansas City Wizards, who missed his original flight originating out of Kansas, has departed and his expected to arrive tomorrow, on the very day of the game.

Another US-based player, Colorado Rapids striker Omar Cummings, was due to depart yesterday for arrival today. The squad is now down to 15 players.

But the series and potentially critical delays is a chain reaction from initial tardiness on the part of Chinese organisers and some clubs in facilitating the request of players in a timely manner, the JFF said yesterday.

“It has been quite a challenge working with the China Football Association (CFA) in administrating on this tour. It took us all of four weeks to receive the official visa letters and same only arrived on Friday, 29 July, one week prior to our scheduled departure and which processing was further disrupted by a public holiday,” said Simpson, the frontman of the JFF.

“We have repeatedly expressed concerns regarding the potential severe dislocation to the overseas based players in particular, given the fact that most would have to travel to cities other than their respective domiciles to apply for the Chinese visa. In some instances, players had mid-week games last week and were not able to travel to secure visas.

“Again, the very late submission by the CFA compromised in no uncertain way the administration of the visa procurement for the players, particularly those based overseas. Nevertheless, we must thank the Chinese Embassy in Jamaica for its excellent co-operation we received in the limited time presented,” Simpson outlined.

China, though a progressive capitalist economy, is well known for its prickly state bureaucracy that remains entrenched in the communist ideology that drives its thinking.

The JFF’s point man coordinating all the crucial elements of the “trying” tour, Simpson said that matters were complicated by securing seats for the contingent, with personnel changing all the time.

“From as early as the week of confirming the game, which is the first week in July, securing seats on flights for the local delegation, as well as the players based in the USA has proven very challenging as all or most flights have either been completely sold out or had limited available seats.

“As a result, we had to confirm seats with immediate payment. This has come at a significant cost to the Federation, as we lost significant monies on tickets for Ryan Johnson, Lovel Palmer, Jason Morrison, Navian Boyd and Keammar Daley,” he told the Observer in a tell-it-like-it-is toned interview.

In the case of Palmer, a member of head coach Thedodore Whitmore’s original squad, the player’s new club Portland Timbers flatly outlined its unwillingness to release the player on the grounds the player needs to time to settle at his new home, rest and to treat a slight injury that would not prevent him from playing.

“Lovell and the Portland Timbers would prefer he not travel to China as he has been flying back and forth from Houston in an attempt to permanently relocate to Portland and also partake in trainings and games etc.

“However, with the travel, new club and in addition to the fact he is suffering from osteitis pubis and currently has an extremely tight lumbopelvic complex, we are requesting that you allow Mr Palmer to remain in Portland/USA… this injury is not enough to prevent him from playing with the National team, but he is currently being treated for it,” was the explanation from the Timbers’ general manager and technical director, Gavin Wilkinson, in e-mail traffic between himself and the JFF on August 1.

Two other players — the Tivoli Gardens duo of Keammar Daley and Navion Boyd — for whom advanced plans were said to have been made for the China trip, also withdrew as they pursued trials overseas.

Other players who were considered for the squad but pulled out for a variety of reasons are Dane Richards, Demar Phillips, Demar Stewart, Jermaine Taylor, Jevaughn Watson, and Duwayne Kerr.

“The agreement with the CFA requires that we include specific overseas players as well as a set number. This posed a major challenge for the JFF in selecting replacement players. It also became a major challenge with the processing of late visa application and securing airline seats. In fact, we were only able to secure flights for Montrose Phinn and Ricardo Cousins after the departure of the main delegation on Friday. The travel agent was not able to secure flights for Kenardo Forbes,” Simpson stated.

A comment from Chinese football officials in Hefei was not forthcoming at press time yesterday.

The nine players who journeyed from Kingston are Adrian Reid, Eric Vernan, Xavian Virgo, Richard Edwards, Keneil Moodie, Omar Daley, Montrose Phinn, Ricardo Cousins, and Richard McCallum.

Due to the fragmented status of the team as it is, coach Whitmore’s training plans have been disrupted, but hopes today’s session will be more wholesome.

Jamaica, ranked 44th by FIFA, are due to kick off against their 73rd-rated Chinese opponents tomorrow at the Hefei Sports Centre at 7:35 pm (6:35 am Jamaica time).