Head coach of the Jamaican Reggae Boyz, Theodore “Tappa” Whitmore, has resigned. Whitmore, handed in his letter of resignation – effective immediately , late Friday.
In the aftermath, Sports Minister Olivia “Babsy” Grange has reportedly taken steps to rectify issues between Whitmore and the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF).
It has been reported that the minister wants to set up a meeting with the parties as soon as possible. This, after speaking with both parties following the news of Whitmore’s resignation. The JFF and Whitmore had been meeting in recent months over an improved contract for the coach.
It has been reported that a recent meeting between the two parties was not convened because Whitmore failed to show up choosing instead to send a letter of resignation.
In February, Whitmore had given the JFF a month to increase his salary, just over two months after he was handed a new contract.
The one-month ultimatum from Whitmore was confirmed by Ricketts at the time.
There are reports that the new contract offered to Whitmore is said to be US$3,000 per month, just over J$370,000 compared to US$45,000 (J$5.6 million) per month that the JFF paid to former coach Winfried “Winnie” Schäfer, a German, between 2013 and 2016.
However, the reported figure to Whitmore was refuted by the JFF.
Whitmore’s new contract was issued six months after he guided the Reggae Boyz to a second-place finish in the CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament in the USA. The Reggae Boyz lost the final 2-1 against the host country.
Just recently, Ricketts had denied any rift between the JFF and Whitmore over the salary he was offered.
