CONCACAF & Simpson - International Preview

By 4two
March 11 2003

TheSaddlersFC takes the opportunity to look at the complex CONCACAF Qualifying Competition on the day Fitzroy Simpson is called up to the Reggae Boyz squad.

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Simmo On Call

Seeming as the week has been littered with news regarding Saddlers players and internationals it was only fitting that seasoned International Fitzroy Simpson got in on the act.

Simpson has been selected to play in Jamaica's Gold Cup Qualifiers against St Lucia, Martinique and Haiti between the 26th - 30th of March.

The Gold Cup Finals are the equivalent to our European Championships, but CONCACAF also choose to invite South American teams to take part.

The Gold Cup is currently held by the USA who won it in 2002. The finals feature 12 teams, two of which are invited from South America. This years finals are a joint venture hosted by the USA and Mexico. The final will be played in the Azteca stadium while the majority of group games are played in Foxboro, Massachusetts and Miami, Florida.

When you look at the qualifying procedure for the tournament it becomes easy to understand just why the game has not taken off in that part of the world. Qualifying is Zoned, while the three previous winners (Canada, Mexico and the USA) are granted automatic qualification.

The Reggae boys are part of the Caribbean Zone, and the Zones two direct qualifiers are to be decided by this round of matches. The two groups of four are going to be hosted in either Trinidad or Jamaica and if Simpson's men only manage to finish second in their group it's not all over because they will join Honduras in a three team play off, an event held at the end of April which provides the final 2 teams for the 12 team tournament.

TheSaddlersFC will bring you reports of how Jamaica do in their qualifiers, and will also be covering the finals should the Reggae boys qualify.