JWPL competition faces scheduling challenge

CHALLENGES SURROUNDING the staging of the 2024 Jamaica Women’s Premier League (JWPL) continued over the weekend as St Thomas-based Proven Girls Academy had their fixture against Real MoBay postponed with the former struggling to fill their roster.

The difficulty arose because a number of players had participated in the ISSA Tip Friendly Society School Girls Football League a day earlier.

Vincent Barnes, manager of Proven Girls Academy, speaking with RJRSports, said the relevant authorities should look at revamping the JWPL schedule to factor in the fact that the league includes many schoolgirls.

“I think something should be done for the schoolgirl and the Premier League clashes as they can look at the fixtures and do something about it. We don’t have the numbers to split the team in two, so if there’s a clashing of games, we have to ask for them to be postponed,” said Barnes.

This latest hiccup follows a series of problems beginning with the pair of Rangers Football Club and Royal Lakes withdrawing on the eve of the competition. Last season’s beaten semifinalist, Vere United, were then booted from the competition after failing to honour their first two fixtures.

The league, which started with 10 teams, is now seven.

Wayne Thompson, president of the St Thomas Football Association, said that with the majority of the players playing in the ISSA schoolgirl league, the players tend to prioritise playing in the age-group competition rather than the country’s top-flight women’s league.

“More than 75 per cent of the girls play for Yallahs, in particular, Morant Bay High and Seaforth. Therefore, it would have been difficult for Proven Girls Academy to have played their game because they wouldn’t have been able to field a team. Part of the challenge also is that the girls tend to give priority to the schoolgirls competition,” he stated.

Thompson added that the matter of balancing schoolgirl football and the Premier League isn’t a ‘Proven’ problem but a situation that a plethora of teams in Jamaica face.

“This isn’t something that is unique to Proven because the women’s football is a development process, so most of the players are playing in the school league,” said Thompson.

When contacted Elaine Walker-Brown, chairperson of the Jamaica Football Federation Women’s Committee, declined to comment on the matter.