Caribbean representatives Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica had to settle for eighth and 16th positions respectively after both produced credible efforts at the FIH Hockey 5s World Cup in Muscat, Oman, on Wednesday.
Trinidad and Tobago suffered a narrow 5-7 loss to Kenya in the seventh and eighth-place playoff, while Jamaica, making an historic appearance at the tournament, also went down by two goals in their 2-4 loss to Fiji in the 15th-16th-place encounter.
Netherlands were crowned champions following their 5-2 beating of Malaysia in the final.
Earlier in the tournament, Trinidad and Tobago registered a 5-5 stalemate with Australia, defeated Kenya 7-2 and then thumped New Zealand 11-4.
However, the twin island republic lost their quarter-final tie 4-5 against Malaysia, and then lost 5-8 to Egypt in the fifth to eighth-place playoff.
Meanwhile, the Jamaicans lost all six games played, but would have benefitted immensely from their debut outing on the world stage.
The Duvaughn Henlon-coached team first suffered a 2-10 loss to Egypt, but produced a more respectable showing in their 4-6 loss to Switzerland in their second encounter. They were also beaten 13-0 and 15-2 and 8-1 by India, Pakistan and United States respectively.
Fabian Stewart, Jamaica Hockey Federation (JHF) president, took heart from the team’s performance and, by extension, top 16 ranking, which he believes is a solid platform to build on going forward.
“The positive of participating in this tournament is that Jamaica is in the top 16 of countries that are playing hockey5s. We earned our spot to come to this tournament and it is clear that we are in the top 16. So we are in the top tier, globally,” said Stewart.
“The players have learnt a lot. The game is played in a particular manner and all the players can actually see the sort of speed they play with.
“We played against top-tier countries that we never got an opportunity to see or play against, but we understand that how we played in parts, we can actually handle them, but we have to be more consistent. But our coaches and staff have seen what is required to operate at this level,” he added.
Jamaica Hockey Federation (JHF) president Fabian Stewart and the hockey5s team are now breathing a collective sigh of relief as the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) has once again heeded their cry for help with another $2 million contribution to get the team to the World Cup in Oman.
JHF officials were left in a bind to meet the budget to ensure the country is represented at the tournament on this historical occasion, as they were told that a $2-million commitment from the Ministry of Sports would not be available until after the World Cup, which gets under way on January 28.
However, their concerns were addressed by the country's Olympic body which stepped in to bridge the gap ahead of the team's departure scheduled for January 22.
JOA president Christopher Samuda explained that rendering assistance was a no-brainer, especially given the magnitude of the occasion. The JOA earlier made a $3 million contribution to the JHF's charge late last year.
Jamaica's hockey5s World Cup debut will see them rubbing shoulders with India, Egypt and Switzerland in Pool B.
"The Jamaica Olympic Association is in the business of empowering our sportsmen, sportswomen, coaches and administrators. Our hockey5s national team made a call and we answered again as in giving further support to them of $2 million. The aspirations of our sportsmen and women must never be dampened, and as the apex body we are committed where possible to hydrate their thirst and passion in representing their country as loyal sporting citizens. They are on their journey to Oman and the Jamaica Olympic Association is with them and it is our fervent hope that they will strike gold," Samuda said.
Meanwhile, Stewart, who said their initial move was to beg and borrow to meet the shortfall, welcomed the JOA's intervention.
“While I thank all the stakeholders that have supported the JHF on the journey to the World Cup in Oman, including the Minister of Sport and various private individuals and entities, my gratitude to the direction and support of the JOA, as well as my belief in president Samuda’s stewardship of the organisation to ensure global success of all sports (large or small), has only deepened based on this critical financial support,” Stewart said.
The Jamaica Hockey Federation (JHF) has secured $3 million in funding from the Jamaica Olympic Association (JOA) to assist in their budget of $38 million to get the senior men’s team to an historic Hockey 5s World Cup debut in Muscat, Oman from January 28-31, 2024.
Hockey 5s is a super-fast-paced and highly skillful game played between two teams with four field players and a goalkeeper. The field size is much smaller than the 11-a-side with a
measurement of 40m x 23.7m with surrounding deflective boards that always keep the ball in play.
It’s a more competitive format of hockey, first played in 2014 and quickly adapted worldwide as the FIH searched for a shorter more entertaining version of the game. Just like netball Fast5, Rugby7s, or Twenty20 cricket.
Ryan Foster, the JOA's Chief Executive Officer, said the contribution was a no-brainer.
"The JOA is extremely proud of the accomplishments of JHF and the men's Hockey 5s team qualification for the World Cup. This is the manifestation of various investments of the JOA since 2017 which amounts to over $25M. This additional $3M given to the JHF is yet another contribution by the JOA in our Sport for All Concept. We measure success not only on medals won, but upon progress made by our member associations," Foster said.
"Any other thought would be narrowed minded. We wish President [Fabian] Stewart and his team all the best in the competition, and it is a win for sport in Jamaica that we can be a part of the discussion in yet another World Cup, albeit for Hockey. Our ability to support so many sports is a testament of our expansive corporate sponsor pool, which has expanded to over $200M in new funds since 2018. Corporate Jamaica has responded, and we continue to engage with a transparent approach that involves accountability and bank for the buck," he added.
Jamaica's men are scheduled to face teams of the highest rank such as Netherlands (#1), India (#3) and more on their much-anticipated debut appearance at the World Cup.
The Men’s competition has a total of 16 countries including Jamaica. Pool B consist of Jamaica, Egypt, Switzerland, and India. The first match will be against Egypt and if its anything like their bronze medal win in the qualifiers, then this match promises to be an exciting one.
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