Following Bermuda’s advancement in the 2018 Russia World Cup CONCACAF Qualifiers, it would appear that the wheels are falling off at the Bermuda Football Association.
It has not been a secret that BFA Youth Director Richard Todd tendered his resignation, but Islandstats.com did not want to disrupt the World Cup preparations with a story that would have taken the focus off the game for the players and coaching staff.
Islandstats.com has recieved a report which was an Analysis of Bermuda Football Situation: A Little Bit of History by Jacques Crevoisier:-
The report spells out several areas that need improvements and also needs discussion among the clubs.
Crevoisier states in the report - The objective of this article is to inform everybody who is interested or involved in Football, about the evolution of the situation in Bermuda, especially regarding Coach Education and Football development.
FIRST ANALYSIS MADE 4 YEARS AGO
Some Bermudian expert coaches, with great experience and a lot of credibility, agreed to give their opinion about the evolution of football on the Island.
To sum up, their opinion was as follows:
Senior Level
Level is going down and not improving for years
Difficult to be competitive at the international level in the Caribbean
No good results in the last 15 years
Level of domestic competitions has dropped
Poor attendance linked to the low level of the games
The best players are now only at the 5th level in England
The teams in our region we used to beat are now better than us
Youth level
Individual good technique but rather offensively orientated
Too focused on technical ability, dribbling, carrying the ball
Average passing game
Players similar in style or build
Lack of decision making and understanding of the game
Game philosophy too much focused on winning but without a strategy
Lack of physical strength to compete
Slender built
Lack of commitment to the game; sometimes lethargic behavior
Lack of ambition and drive
Lack of self confidence
Strong Points
Real football culture and passion for football
Good role model with English Clubs as point of reference
Weak Points
Lack of collective spirit or sense of effort
Lack of discipline and courage
Lack of spirit of competition
Lack of commitment and consistency in the games and trainings
Lack of vision
Lack of financial resources and investment in sport
Of course this appraisal is not very optimistic, and some people could maybe consider that it is a little bit severe.
However it’s difficult to dispute the findings because the assessments are objective, impartial and fairly obvious.
The capacity to recognize one’s own mistakes or weaknesses is the first compulsory step to having a chance to improve.
Only by thinking seriously on that analysis will it give the coaches some ideas and orientations for their work in the future.
Possible Objectives
Be competitive again at the senior level
Be competitive with youth national teams regionally
Attract a maximum of young players into football for educational reasons
Those 3 objectives are more than respectable and establish basic targets for Bermuda.
To reach them some strategies are necessary.
So we will now mention what could be done and also what has been done.
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