No one disputes the importance of sport in national development, but despite the superlative success that Jamaica and the Caribbean have reaped, we continue to ignore one very critical aspect of sport – the mental.

We can also agree that professional sport is not merely a game. A game is a pastime that is indulged in for fun and recreation. Professional sport, on the other hand, is a complex, global business involving billions of dollars and large numbers of specialists, many of whom never step on the field of play.

Jamaica is a successful world leader in track and field because it is a highly organised, very professional business. Obviously, we have exceptional talent in quantity and quality, but it becomes world class because it is approached as a well-organised, professionalised business.

Its prestige and financial success encourage people to invest their talent from a very early stage, now from even the preparatory school level, to be developed by professional coaches, many of them former world-class professional athletes. Much of this is manifested in the Boys’ and Girls’ Championships, a unique sporting event in the world of athletics.

Contrast this to the miserable failure of cricket since the halcyon days of being the longest world champs in any sport, and football, with only one qualification for the final round of the World Cup in 60 years. The main problem is the weakness in Caribbean professional sports of cricket and football.

As former football coach Mr Rene Simoes explained, what is on the field starts with and reflects the off the field organisation and administration. This is borne out by the dismal, repeated incompetence of those who are responsible for the administration of West Indies cricket and Jamaican football.

It also shows in the failure to get wholehearted buy-in by governments in the region and tangible contributions of the private sector, and the frequent public disputes with players over remuneration and working conditions.

Coaching and management needs to be more professionalised. A former player does not necessarily make a good coach or team manager. If one aspires to be world class, then one must be wiling to pay for a world-class professional.

Another mental aspect of losing is the failure to properly prepare for professional performance and studying each opponent for each match, not just the team as a whole but the individual members.

Use computerised data and study film of both our own players to overcome weaknesses a nd analyse opponents to identify their weaknesses. We should not accept excuses from a professional who is not injured for failing a fitness test. If they do or even come late to practice, there should be financial penalties like those in the US.

Caribbean professional players have no excuse for the mental breakdown which allows opponents to score one or two goals in the last 10 minutes of a game against the Reggae Boyz. The irrational shot selection and inability to catch and bowl line and length in cricket is unprofessional.

The current team cannot concentrate for 20 overs much less for four days of a Test match. Only in Jamaican football and West Indies cricket is there no remedy or penalty for losing due to the mental lapses and lack of sustained concentration.