Waite wants to get to work right away

FRESHLY MINTED head coach of Jamaica’s under-20 team, Jerome Waite, is hoping to start his tenure quickly.

Waite said he will be looking towards getting as many training sessions with the teams because he only has three months to prepare before the start of the Concacaf Under-20 Championships, his first assignment in charge of the young Boyz.

“Presently this is a team that has been playing together for some time, so three months, it’s not enough time. But it will have to be enough based on where the team is at presently. All of those players are active. They are involved in some level of football or playing in some team,” said Waite.

Waite was responding to yesterday’s announcement that John Wall, who had been coaching the under-20s for the last year and took the team, unbeaten, through qualification for the under-20 championships, will be headed back to take up duties with the Reggae Boyz.

According to a press release from the JFF, Wall will now be focusing on his role as assistant coach for Heimir Hallgrímsson as the senior men’s team prepares for its Nations League semifinal fixture against the United States later this month.

“The Jamaica Football Federation has decided to recall coach John Wall from duties with the U20 team so he can better concentrate on assisting coach Hallgrimsson in preparing the Senior Men’s National Team for the numerous competitions ahead,” the JFF’s official statement read.

Under Wall’s guidance, Jamaica defeated Martinique, Grenada and Bermuda in the CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Qualifiers.

Waite, who coaches Wolmer’s Boys’ School in the Manning Cup and Tivoli Gardens in the Jamaica Premier League, is not new to coaching at the national level, having under-20, under-23 and senior-level experience.

The CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championships begin in June and will be hosted in Guanajuato, Mexico, with the group draw set for April.

The top four teams from the CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship will qualify for the 2025 FIFA Under-20 World Cup.