Audley Boyd, Assistant Sport Editor
Mcfarlane and Andrews
RATHER QUIETLY, the Institute of Sports (INSPORTS) has been laying a solid foundation for players in vast sporting disciplines right across the country.
Since 1978, the organisation has functioned as the government arm that implements sporting policies in the country from the basic level and mainly through schools.
Sports officers are responsible for running its programmes, and Ian Andrews, INSPORTS' executive director, tells how they operate.
"Each sports officer is expected to, on a monthly basis, create and/or invent programmes which will assist in unearthing talent in the schools and the communities. They are also required to conduct seminars dealing with the theoretical aspect of the sport or discipline that they are teaching," Andrews said.
"They are also expected to organise competitions," Andrews adds. "In terms of the competitions, they organise all those competitions with a view to picking out the best talent. So when they pick them out they say these five or six I'll recommend to the track and field programme, I'll recommend to the cricket programme, I'll recommend to the netball programme, and so forth and so on."
Such programmes are run in all the parishes and it is from these competitions that many of the more talented youngsters are brought to the national forefront.
"We develop the youngsters from the primary schools, basic schools, junior high and high schools, to some extent," notes Bruce McFarlane, INSPORTS' assistant executive director.
"Our main areas are cricket, football, track and field, basketball and netball and, to some extent, softball we have a coach who teaches some softball," McFarlane pointed out, adding that "we implement most of our policies in schools, certain communities and with associations. Our drive is to unearth the talent."
He further stated: "When we have the track and field programmes going on all the coaches from the Calabars, JCs and KCs and top high schools come with their pen and paper, and they are the ones who take the athletes from our programme and develop them. The foundation was laid at INSPORTS."
SIGNIFICANT ROLE
Taking into consideration the fact that most youngsters go through basic, primary, all-age and junior high and high school levels, INSPORTS would have played a significant role in the development of many top stars. While noting the contribution of their organisation to islandwide sporting development, McFarlane and Andrews feel they don't get the type of recognition that is deserving.
"The unforgiving thing for INSPORTS, I think, is that after the youngsters leave the tender age and go on, nobody remembers where they're coming from," McFarlane complains. "Everybody says I've this big player here, but nobody recognises that they came through the INSPORTS programmes. People like Connie Francis, Oberon Pitterson, Usain Bolt, Chris Gayle and many more of our top sporting stars, they all came through these programmes."
The interview was done at the sporting organisation's National Arena headquarters, where it has been stationed since it came into being as the National Sports Limited, under the directorship of Trevor Parchment, the then national sports coordinator.
In those days, there were 60 sports officers, one for each constituency. Then it used to function in accordance with what has since become known as the Social Development Commission (SDC), as one entity.
Now, they operate generally as separate entities, even though INSPORTS assists the SDC in coordinating the sporting aspects of its programmes from time to time.
"The SDC is basically geared at community projects which encompass a number of things recreational, social programmes, economic programmes like when you're going to do some form of upliftment for the community, painting, etc. Sports is a part of it. Where that's concerned they'll ask INSPORTS to assist with that part of it, where it concerns some technical expertise. So if they want to start a football fest they'll call our football officers to come and organise it," explained Andrews.
There are now 34 sports officers operating in 13 of the 14 parishes, and Glen Mills, the national track and field head coach, is its national coordinator. McFarlane doubles as his assistant.
The only parish without a resident officer is Hanover, the nation's smallest, but McFarlane says Jerry Reid, an officer from Montego Bay in neighbouring St. James, sometimes helps out in that area.
Andrews further pointed out that they had an officer in that parish up to four months ago but the person "resigned and we haven't filled the vacancy yet".
Asked about the criteria for a sports officer, Andrews said that it's not fully defined.
"I'd expect that any sports officer who comes on board must have some expertise either in coaching or as a player. It's not a man who you'd just pick up off the road. It has to be someone who has not only a love for sport, but some form of administrative skills, also technical knowledge. We want to see some more qualified coaches, who are certified in whatever discipline. I've never selected one but we're working on a certification programme now," he said.
OFFICERS
Some of its officers, along with those aforementioned, include originals Lloyd 'Respic' Morgan, Lurline Hall and Joseph Salmon, who started out in the National Sports Limited days, Junior Bennett in St. Elizabeth, Barry Watson in Manchester, Constantine Cunningham in St. Ann, Bertland Cameron, former national cricketers Robert Samuels, and Robert Haynes who just retired as national senior cricket coach, Joseph Morgan, Godfrey Lothian and Elaine-Walker Brown, a stalwart in the national women's football programme, who does a lot of netball work in St. Catherine.
Apart from organising competitions and drafting talent for national programmes, McFarlane listed other means of support provided by INSPORTS.
"We provide footballs, netballs, cones, gear, sometimes shoes to the schools. We help in every way possible. Sometimes we have officers who work in some of these schools, we look at their programmes and we try the best to help them."
Asked to explain what people do to get their assistance, McFarlane said: "They usually write to us and then we go and look at what they're doing, assess the case and help in whatever way we can."
