By Audley Boyd, Assistant Sport EditorJAMAICA'S TECHNICAL team members are crossing their fingers and clasping hands in hope that the Reggae Boyz' stay healthy for next Wednesday's crucial away qualifier against the United States in Columbus, Ohio.
"From a coach's point of view, for the next five days we're going to keep our fingers crossed and pray for our players based home and away. The biggest concern now is that none of our players pick up an injury," Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) technical director Carl Brown told The Gleaner in an interview after the team's practice session at the National Stadium on Tuesday evening.
"Over the next five days all our players will be involved in club football both home and abroad," he said.
These include the vast majority of team members who play their football in Britain and a few home-based squad members. Both sets of players are slated to play for their clubs from today and right throughout the weekend.
DENIED A REGULAR SQUAD
Already, Brown and his coaching staff have been denied a regular squad member through injury - Jermaine Johnson - who damaged his knee at the weekend while playing for his English club Oldham Athletic. The injury is expected to keep the midfielder out of action for six weeks.
There are several players though who are exempt from match risks because their club season in the United States' Major League Soccer (MLS) championship has ended.
Midfielders Andy Williams, his Chicago Fire strike teammate Damani Ralph and defenders Tyrone Marshall (LA Galaxy) and Craig Ziadie (New York/New Jersey Metrostars) comprise that lot.
Williams and Ralph were the first to arrive and they were involved in training on Tuesday with a squad largely made up of the Under-20 boys who are also preparing for upcoming age group World Cup qualifiers. Ziadie and Marshall were due yesterday and Brown said the others "are due in on Sunday".
The technical director also pointed out that he has been keeping in touch with the players in Britain by phone and they were optimistic about the team's chances.
"We've spoken to the players and they're expressing confidence of going to the United States and winning," Brown said.
"That'll be the important factor - that the players do believe that they can go there and do it," he said.
The Jamaicans' head coach, Sebastiao Lazaroni, has kept repeating the importance of playing with confidence as well, and it was no different on Tuesday.
KEEP CONFIDENT
"They (US) have a good team ... but we must keep confident," the Brazilian stated, adding that "we need to move, especially when we have the situation to score."
Due to the fact that a large part of his squad is absent, Lazaroni says "we're focusing on the physical and technical" parts of the game now, and "I hope by Friday we can make a squad game to be sharp".
The match is crucial to the Reggae Boyz' chances of qualifying for CONCACAF's Final Six play-offs, which ultimately decides the qualifiers for Germany 2006.
At the present time, the Reggae Boyz lie second on six points, one ahead of Panama and two over El Salvador. The Americans lead the group on 11 points and have already taken one of two spots up for grabs from the four-nation semi-final group series.
The qualifiers from Group One will be zoned with four others from Groups Two and Three to contest a home-and-away round robin series.
The top three nations in this play-off will advance to the World Cup Finals in Germany in 2006, and the fourth country will contest a two-way play-off against the fifth-place team from Asian qualification.
