I don’t get it!
TUCKER, St James — Orville Powell, president of promoted Jamaica Premier League (JPL) team Montego Bay United, has questioned the wisdom of one venue being approved to host games in the league set to start this weekend.
Only the field at the Jamaica Football Federation/Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence at The University of the West Indies, Mona, has been approved to host games and Powell says that decision makes no sense in the context that other venues had been approved to host schoolboy football games.
Earlier, JPL executive Christopher Williams had said they were seeking permission to use other venues, including Drax Hall in St Ann and the Montego Bay Sports Complex in St James, after playing almost the entire previous season on the artificial turf in Kingston.
Eighteen venues had been approved by the Government to host schoolboy games in both the rural and corporate competitions, including Wespow Park where Montego Bay United are based.
A 19th venue, the Montego Bay Sports Complex, had also been given the nod to host game, but had not been used so far for what has been termed economic reasons by ISSA, given the cost to use the venue when they did not have permission to allow paying spectators.
At Tuesday’s press conference at Wespow Park to announce Ricky Hill as the new technical director and to introduce the squad, Powell told the Jamaica Observer the decision was not to approve new venues as that was already accomplished.
“We have had a few games here and we are looking at a venue which would make it a lot more economically viable, also the Catherine Hall stadium,” he said.
“We are not asking for more venues it be approved, there are already approved so use them.”
Powell pointed out that playing every game at the same venue would be an unfair advantage to the four teams based outside Kingston — MBU, Humble Lion, Vere United and Mt Pleasant Football Academy.
“I have to think something is seriously wrong with our decision making processes,” Powell argued.
“The Premier League is an expensive venture and people have invested a lot into it, so I have to be upset.
“All I can ask is what is the Government thinking, the same protocols that were given to schoolboys’ football is now being with withheld from a business entity which is all about revenues and we are trying to make some money,” he pointed out, “I guess some oversight was involved but what we are hearing makes no sense,” Powell noted.