English Football League (EFL) club Swansea has called for social media companies to do more to combat racial abuse on their platforms after Jamaica international Jamal Lowe was abused on Instagram following defeat at Birmingham City on Friday night.
Lowe posted the now removed message to his personal page, with the caption “some serious idiots out there.” The issue of players being abused online has again come to the fore in recent weeks with legendary Arsenal forward Thierry Henry quitting social media to highlight the issue.
Lowe was the third Swansea player, since February, to be subjected to racist abuse on social media.
"This is the third time in space of seven weeks where one of our players has been subjected to such abhorrent messages, and we continue to call on social media companies to go above and beyond to eradicate this appalling level of behaviour from their platforms," a Swansea spokesperson said.
"Jamal has the full and unwavering support of everyone at the football club,” he added.
Lowe, 26, has scored nine goals in 41 Swansea appearances since joining the Welsh club from Wigan in August 2020. The player also recently scored on debut for Jamaica in a 4-1 loss to the United States in Austria.
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced a new deal with India sports platform Fan Code, which will see the Dream Sports-owned product become the exclusive broadcasters of West Indies cricket in the Asian country.
The four-year partnership is expected to see fans of West Indies cricket in India given access to close to 150 international and 250 domestic cricket matches from the Caribbean. The list will include 16 International West Indies Men’s Series, CG Insurance Super50 Cup matches, West Indies Women’s Home Series, and Under-19 International Cricket matches.
In addition to a list of upcoming international tour matches, the agreement will see the platform gain exclusive rights for the next India tour of West Indies in July 2022 (three ODIs and three T20 Internationals) and any subsequent India tours within the period.
President of CWI, Ricky Skerritt, hailed the deal as having the potential to bring West Indies cricket to millions of fans in India.
“We are delighted to announce this new partnership with FanCode,” Skerritt said.
“India is one of our close allies in the cricket world and a key player in the global sporting landscape so this new agreement will enhance our presence there and also bring millions of fans closer to our team and to the magnificence of West Indies cricket,” he added.
Commenting on the association, Yannick Colaco, co-founder of FanCode, admitted the company was excited to be associated with West Indies cricket.
“The Caribbean is home to some of the most entertaining cricket played in the world. We are excited to partner with Cricket West Indies and bring close to 400 matches from the Caribbean featuring some of world cricket's biggest and brightest stars, to Indian cricket fans. This partnership will give millions of cricket fans in India the opportunity to experience FanCode and the many digital innovations we are bringing to improve the sports fan consumption experience.”
The Jamaica-born duo of Stacey-Ann Williams and Charokee Young finished first and second for their respective universities in the women’s 400m at the Texas vs Texas A&M Dual track meet on Saturday.
Williams, the former ST Elizabeth Technical athlete, now competing for Texas, crossed the line first in a time of 51.24, comfortably ahead of Young who finished in 51.52 for Texas A&M. Syaira Richardson, also of Texas A&M was third in 52.17.
In the women’s 100m, former Edwin Allen star Kevona Davis clocked 11.35 but had to settle for second place behind Texas teammate Kynnedy Flannel who took the top spot in 11.23. Texas A&M’s Kaylah Robinson was third in 11.69.
At the same event, O’Brien Wasome, formerly of Jamaica College, took the top spot in the men’s triple jump. Competing for Texas, Wasome recorded a distance of 15.83m, comfortably ahead of CJ Stevenson who was second with 15.19, and teammate Stacy Brown Jr who was third with 14.65m.
In the women’s high jump, the day belonged to Trinidad and Tobago jumper Tyra Gittens who leapt 1.90m to claim the top spot for Texas A&M. Texas’ Marlene Guerrero was second with 1.73 and her teammate Trinity Tomlinson third with the same height.
West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite insists he was proud of the fighting spirit shown by the team despite drawing both Test matches against Sri Lanka.
On Friday’s final day of the match, the visitors closed on 193 for 2 still almost 200 runs shorts of the target, and ensured that honours were shared not just for the match but for the series.
In both matches, Sri Lanka in the first and West Indies in the second, the teams headed into the final day with big enough leads but found wickets hard to come by as they looked to force a result. The hosts may not have come out on top in the final assessment, but the newly minted captain found plenty to be encouraged by moving forward.
“Obviously it was a good pitch. In both Test matches the bowlers really worked hard and what I was pleased with is that none of the guys ever gave up,” Brathwaite said.
“Even down to Alzarri’s last spell he was still giving an effort to get some short balls in so I’m very happy with the effort of the team.”
The captain was also pleased with the fact that the team knuckled down to bat a fair number of overs.
“… batting-wise, we continued to bat a number of overs – 90-plus overs which is a positive for us. And yes, we would’ve liked to have won but I was very happy with the attitude and discipline that we had. The pitch was a good one throughout; it didn’t spin at all, but I was very happy with the fast bowlers’ effort.”
Jamaica international, Leon Bailey, believes a strong performance at the FIFA World Cup would be the highlight of his career and expressed belief in the current squad’s ability to get to the next edition of the tournament in 2022.
The 23-year-old Bayer Leverkusen winger has been in splendid form for the Bundesliga club so far this season, scoring 12 goals and getting 8 assists in all competitions. The player is, however, yet to really kick his international career into gear, scoring once in only eight appearances.
Bailey is expected to feature prominently for the team in the coming months, with Jamaica scheduled to take part in the CONCACAF Gold Cup, before beginning the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers in September. With potentially four teams able to qualify for the 2022 World Cup, from the region, Jamaica are currently CONCACAF’s 6th best team according to the latest rankings. The Caribbean team is, however, already in the final round and could have a good chance to qualify. Several members of the Jamaican national team are, however, embroiled in a protracted dispute with the country’s football federation, which could have an impact on their campaign.
“I think we have a good team. We can really keep up. Go to the World Cup and keep up there. The most important thing is that it would give Jamaica a lot of attention,” Bailey told OneFootball.
Bailey, who hopes to be an inspiration to young players from Jamaica, does not want to simply make up numbers at the tournament, should the team qualify.
“Not just playing at a World Cup for Jamaica, but also asserting yourself at a World Cup with Jamaica. Don't just play the group stage. Keep up. Quarterfinals, semi-finals, even a final. That would be the greatest achievement of all time for me. "
Stubborn resistance from Pathum Nissanka and persistent rain frustrated the West Indies on the third day of the second Test, as Sri Lanka closed play on 250 for 8, still some 104 runs behind the first innings target.
The Sri Lankans resumed play at 136 for 3 but the promising partnership of Dinesh Chandimal (44) and Dhanajaya De Silva (39) was halted in its tracks during the morning session. Chandimal was tempted into an attempted hook shot by Shannon Gabriel and caught at deep square leg.
De Silva was given lbw on a delivery from part-timer Jermaine Blackwood, which seemed to be turning away from the stumps. The decision was, however, not appealed.
The rain repeatedly interrupted play after lunch but there was still time for all-rounder Jason Holder to account for Niroshan Dickwella (21), who was caught behind from an inside edge. Suranga Lakmal did not stick around long as he lasted for 9 deliveries before being caught at mid-on by Kraigg Brathwaite off Alzarri Joseph. Dushmantha Chameera became the eighth wicket to fall, after tea, when he was caught by Joshua Da Silva off Holder but Nissanka dug into to reach to within one of a half-century and will resume tomorrow with Lasith Embuldeniya, who is scoreless.
The rain meant that, overall, only 42 over of play were possible at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.
England international, Declan Rice, is confident the Three Lions have plenty of firepower to choose from in light of West Ham teammates Michail Antonio’s decision to represent the Jamaica national team.
The 30-year-old striker, who has Jamaican parents, announced his decision to change nationalities a few months ago and is expected to join up with the Caribbean team at the end of the EPL season.
The powerful forward was called up by England in 2016 but has never made an appearance for the country. Despite consternation raised in some quarters, regarding the prospect of England losing the forward, Rice believes the team has plenty of cover and tipped his teammate for success with the Reggae Boyz.
“He’s such a handful. I see it every day in training. He’s so strong. He holds the ball up well. He makes efficient runs in behind. He’s a defender's worst nightmare,” Rice told the UK Dailey Star.
“But look he’s chosen his allegiance with Jamaica now. I’m sure he’s going to have a great time there,” he added.
“We’ve got other strikers that pledged themselves to England that haven’t got in the squad lately who can easily fill the boots of Antonio, so, we’re well prepared with strikers.”
The Hammers star Antonio has seven goals and five assists so far this season, as West Ham are locked in battle for a top-four finish.
Jamaica Reggae Boy, Kemar Lawrence, has accused the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) of cutting the legs out from under the team’s head coach Theodore Whitmore.
Whitmore, who signed a new four-year contract with the JFF in 2018, has largely stayed on the sidelines as some members of the national squad and the JFF have wrangled over contractual negotiations for the past few months.
The coach has, however, on occasion made his frustrations know, mostly as it relates to dissatisfaction with the lack of organisation and lack of resources available for the national program.
In addressing the ongoing issue during a recent interview with YouTube channel Reggae Boyz Commentary, Lawrence highlighted a few of the issues that also impacted the coach. The defender pointed to the fact that the team has only one physiotherapist and one equipment manager as some of the issues that have impacted the unit. Whitmore has in addition requested a video analyst as part of his technical staff but, to date, no such post has been created.
“What Tappa has been doing with the limited number of resources that he has; you want to break that up? Tappa is getting it right and we have a short space of time and he is doing his best to make everything work and the Federation is cutting his legs from under him,” Lawrence said.
“We want them to understand where we are coming from and just be honest. They share things in TV interviews that are nowhere close to what is the truth. Tell the Jamaican people what is going on,” he added.
“The players reach a level where they are fed up. If the (JFF’s) approach is “hol this” then bring who wants to go to the Gold Cup (to play) without 2 or 3 medical staff, physio or a technical coach, because these are the things that will get us to win in the finals, not just being there.
It’s a difference between us and the USA because every time they do well they look at what they have done and they bring more to the table in terms of video sessions, anything to help.”
Whitmore led the team to the 2017 Gold Cup final, the second time it has done so in its history.
Guyana convincingly recovered from an opening-round loss to Trinidad and Tobago with a 4-0 win over the Bahamas in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers on Tuesday.
Goals from Terrence Vancooten (8th), Kadell Daniel (54th), Oman Glasgow (75th), and Emery Welshman (81st) gave the Golden Jaguars a comfortable win, with The Bahamas slipping to a second straight loss and remaining at the bottom of the group. The win saw Guyana move to third place in Group A, behind second-place T&T and early leaders St Kitts and Nevis.
Elsewhere, Belize also registered a big win with a 5-0 win over Turks and Caicos Island in Group E. Belize were led by a brace from Carlos Bernárdez (45+3, 48) with addition goals from Jesse August (47th), Deshawon Nembhard (81) and Deon McCaulay (90+1). The win sees Belize move second behind leader Nicaragua on goal difference and ahead of third-place Haiti.
A brace from Kane Critchlow (36th, 80th) also ensures that Bermuda were also among the big winners of the round as they registered a 5-0 win over Aruba in Group B. Other goals in the match came from Jaylon Bather (40th), Dante Leverock (57th), and Knory Scott (64th). The win moved Bermuda to third spot behind leaders Canada and second place Suriname who both have 6 points.
In other results, Barbados registered a 1-0 win over Anguilla in Group D, Grenada secured a 1-0 win over the US Virgin Islands in Group A, and St Vincent and the Grenadines secured a 3-0 over British Virgin Islands in Group C. The goals came from Oalex Anderson (10th), Zidane Sam (20th), and Azinho Solomon (86th).
West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite completed his ninth Test century to place his team in a strong position at the close of play on the second day of the second Sandals Test match against Sri Lanka.
Brathwaite needed only two balls at the start of the day to reach triple figures – when he worked the second ball from Suranga Lakmal to fine leg for a single to reach the landmark off 241 balls with 11 fours.
Brathwaite ended on 126 off 311 balls with 13 fours in seven hours and shared a crucial 103-run eighth-wicket partnership with Rahkeem Cornwall, which helped West Indies to 354. Cornwall reached a new highest score of 73 off just 92 balls with 10 fours and a six, to follow up his 61 in the first match last week.
Sri Lanka replied with 136-3 at the close of the day.
Lahiru Thirimanne followed his scores of 70 and 76 in the first Test with 55, which provided solidity at the top of the Sri Lanka order. Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya De Silva then batted through 25 overs in an unbroken fourth-wicket partnership which was worth 59 runs at stumps. Chandimal was 34 not out and De Silva 23.
Jamaica Reggae Boy, Kemar Lawrence. has insisted the current dispute with the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) is about more than money but also respect and equality for all members of the national team.
For the past couple of months, several members of the national team and the JFF have been locked in bitter contractual negotiations ahead of what will be a crucial year for the national team, which will see it participate in the CONCACAF Gold Cup and later the World Cup qualifiers.
Initial reports revealed that the parties were far apart on negotiations with the federation balking at, among other things, the player’s initial proposal of US$7,000 per game for the World Cup qualifiers. In response, the JFF insisted it was unable to go above US$2,000 and the parties have been unable to bridge that gap since.
In recent weeks, however, the parties reportedly moved closer to an agreement in key several areas. However, several regular team players remained absent for the recent friendly against the United States, which the team lost 4-1, meaning some issues were yet to be resolved. With the issue sharply diving opinion, some have accused the players of being mercenaries. Insisting nothing could be further from the truth, however, Lawrence pointed to issues of inequality and unfairness in terms of how certain players were treated as another crucial sticking point.
“The negotiations are about more than one thing, it’s not about the money. People are getting injured flying economy across the world and when they reach, they only have two days to train and then play,” Lawrence told YouTube channel Reggae Boyz Commentary.
“The other day when we were going to Saudi Arabia, upon boarding my flight in London, I met with four English-based players who went into business class and they put me in economy. On the way back, the same thing. I play for an elite club in the topflight in Belgium. I have more caps than all four put together and these are the things that cause segregation. Enough seats were on the flight, so what do they leave me as a senior player to think? Where is the level of respect and professionalism? At the end of the day, I have a job to do and I try to do it to the best of my ability. It has happened to me, Lowe, Blake, Flemmings, all of us, and this is not the second or third time that this has happened,” he added.
“Put players on direct flights, business class flights. We need medical staff. How can you have one physio for 24 players? You have one equipment manager, one man, and he is over 50. The JFF doesn’t think he needs some help? Then you have 12 members of their delegation. Why can’t we get additional medical staff and a physical coach on the technical team to aid our coach?” Lawrence asked.
The 28-year-old defender has made some 60 appearances for the Jamaica national team and was a part of the units that carried Jamaica to successive CONCACAF Gold Cup finals.
The Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) and president Wilford Heaven have re-ignited calls for structural reform, following the postponement of Cricket West Indies (CWI) elections at the weekend.
The election would have pitted incumbent president Ricky Skerritt and his vice-president Kishore Shallow, against challengers Anand Sanasie of Guyana and Calvin Hope of Barbados. The event was, however, called off after a quorum could not be reached, following the absence of representatives from Barbados and Guyana.
The reason presented by both the Guyana Cricket Board and Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) is that Cricket West Indies (CWI) had failed to observe protocol by submitting an audited financial statement 14 days before the AGM.
The JCA, through a release issued on Monday, claims the decision to postpone the election, once again spoke to the need for government reform.
“This occurrence which is potentially damaging to the reputation of the people in the Caribbean as well as those in the diaspora highlights the urgent need for change to the structure of CWI,” the release read.
JCA president Wilford Heaven, a part of the CWI finance committee, responsible for distributing the financial report called the inability to reach a quorum regrettable. He claimed that five regional boards had already agreed to waive the 14-day requirement for the consolidated report. The fault, Heaven explained, was that of the auditors and as such there was little the CWI could do.
“We have to ensure that this does not happen again in West Indies cricket. I believe it is an embarrassment to everyone concerned and its obvious that we need for better governance to ensure better leadership,” Heaven said.
“The Wehby report is an outstanding agenda item that we now need to pay serious attention to. It is now even more important given what happened to the AGM.”
Cricket West Indies (CWI) vice president, Dr Kishore Shallow, does not expect the recent Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) elections to affect the candidacy of former GCB secretary Anand Sanasie as independent candidates are allowed to run for the post of the presidency.
On Monday, the GCB elected Guyana businessman Bissoondyal Singh to the post of president of the association, with Rabindranauth Saywack and Hilbert Foster set to serve as vice-presidents and Ronald Williams named secretary.
Sanasie is part of a two-man slate set to challenge incumbent vice CWI president Ricky Skerritt, with Barbados’ Calvin Hope set to challenge Shallow for the vice-presidency. Following the election, however, Sanasie would no longer be a member of the board, and as such speculation arose regarding the future of the challenge. Shallow, however, expects Sanasie to be on the slate when the election takes place on April 11.
“Independent persons can be nominated for the post of president and vice-president, so he is not automatically disqualified,” Shallow explained.
“You don’t have to be a voting member or a shareholder to be eligible to be a candidate and that means both his and the nomination of his running mate would stand at this point,” he added.
The CWI elections were scheduled to be held last weekend but was postponed after a quorum could not be reached, following the absence of representatives from Guyana and Barbados.
West Indies captain, Kraigg Brathwaite, batted through the day for an invaluable 99 not out as the team reached 287-7 at the close of play, on the opening day of the second and final Sandals Test against Sri Lanka, at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, in Antigua on Monday.
Brathwaite demonstrated patience and tenacity on a pitch which offered some assistance to the seam bowlers in the first session. Brathwaite’s innings has spanned six-and-a-half hours in which he faced 239 balls and struck 11 fours. He is on the verge of a ninth Test century, which would also be his second at the venue, the other was 121 against Bangladesh in 2018.
When he reached 98, Brathwaite also became the 16th West Indian batsman to surpass 4,000 Test runs – to join an elite list. The others are Sir Everton Weekes, Sir Viv Richards, Brian Lara, Sir Garry Sobers, Rohan Kanhai, Sir Gordon Greenidge, Alvin Kallicharan, Sir Richie Richardson, Sir Clive Lloyd, Roy Fredericks, Chris Gayle, Shiv Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Desmond Haynes and Carl Hooper.
He held the innings together and shared the day’s honours with Saranga Lakmal who had claimed two early wickets – John Campbell and Nkrumah Bonner and added Jermaine Blackwood to end the day with 3-71.
Brathwaite and Kyle Mayers had a third-wicket partnership of 71 as the left-handed made 49. West Indies slipped to 222-7 in the final session of the day, but Brathwaite found another resolute partner in Rahkeem Cornwall, who closed unbeaten on 43, in a partnership that has been worth 65 runs so far for the eighth wicket.
English Championship strugglers Sheffield Wednesday have decided against signing Jamaica international Ravel Morrison after a brief trial period at the club.
The former Manchester United youth standout was invited to train with the club earlier this month after leaving Eredivisie minnows ADO Den Haag in January. The Owls were weighing up the decision to give the midfielder a contract until the end of the season but decided against doing so.
The club would have needed to register the 28-year-old last week, in order to add him to the first-team squad for the rest of the season. The team currently finds itself mired in the relegation zone, in 23rd position, with only a handful of games to save themselves.
For his part, Morrison will be looking for his 12th club in what has been a nomadic career to date. Some of the player’s former clubs have included West Ham United, Lazio, Queens Park Rangers, and Middlesbrough.
Interestingly Wednesday is coached by another Jamaica international Darren Moore. Moore's men entered the international break in good heart following a positive win over Barnsley.
Wednesday return to action on Friday when they travel to automatic promotion contenders Watford.
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