Richard King forced his way into the senior Reggae Boyz squad last year after some good performances for champions Cavalier FC in the Jamaica Premier League and has remained there since.

Though still only 20 years old, the former Clarendon College DaCosta Cup player put in a very good performance in defence in the World Cup qualifier against El Salvador at the National Stadium last Thursday, alongside the experienced Adrian Marriapa and Damion Lowe.

His was an eye-catching performance in a game that the Reggae Boyz showed vast improvement compared to their last outing.

King thanked the senior players, who he gets to learn from whenever he is called into camp for the national team.

“It’s mostly thanks to the experienced players that I am playing with. They are full of experience, and I just have to come in and learn from them,” he said.

Like the rest of the team, he played on the front foot, pushing into spaces in the midfield when he could, as per the instructions of the coaching staff.

“The coaches tell me to have confidence, don’t be afraid, make mistakes and win it back again. I just have to be a confident player,” he disclosed.

It was definitely one of the best displays by the Reggae Boyz since King has been a part of the set up and he was delighted with the way the team played.

“I love how we controlled the game. It was a wonderful game. Unfortunately, we drew, but we should have won,” he proclaimed.

King believes that a part of the contributing factor to the improvement in the display of the team is down to the players taking responsibility.

“Definitely things are getting better in the squad. The players said, `We have to do it now, so we came together and reasoned it out,’” he explained.

The polished centre back is hoping for an even better display from the team when they go up against the group leaders Canada this afternoon, starting at 3:05pm.

“We have to keep on improving. Even in the next game, we want a better performance,” he concluded.

With nothing left to play for but pride, Jamaica will certainly be looking to put in a good performance against our North American neighbours who are virtually assured of a spot at the Qatar World Cup later this year.