Purser urges young Boyz to embrace high-intensity football after Baku test
Key Points(5)
- Jamaica’s FIFA Under-15 World Cup campaign has exposed a significant gap in the speed and intensity of the team’s play, with assistant coach Lewin Purser insisting that the young Reggae Boyz must learn to make decisions much faster if they are to compete at the international level.
- Speaking as the team prepared to conclude its tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan, against El Salvador in the 63rd-place playoff, Purser said the experience had provided a valuable opportunity to measure Jamaica against opponents from outside its familiar Concacaf and Caribbean environment.
- “The world is catching up in football.
- Everybody can play, and we are just hoping to learn all we can from this tournament,” he said.
- “Playing outside of Concacaf, we have seen world-class teams.
Jamaica’s FIFA Under-15 World Cup campaign has exposed a significant gap in the speed and intensity of the team’s play, with assistant coach Lewin Purser insisting that the young Reggae Boyz must learn to make decisions much faster if they are to compete at the international level.
Speaking as the team prepared to conclude its tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan, against El Salvador in the 63rd-place playoff, Purser said the experience had provided a valuable opportunity to measure Jamaica against opponents from outside its familiar Concacaf and Caribbean environment.
“The world is catching up in football. Everybody can play, and we are just hoping to learn all we can from this tournament,” he said.
“Playing outside of Concacaf, we have seen world-class teams. This is our first time playing against Europeans and Africans. Normally, it’s just Concacaf or Caribbean teams,” he continued.
Faster football the priority
Purser believes the tournament has reinforced a concern that must be addressed in the development of young Jamaican players: the time they take to process situations and execute decisions on the field.
“What we have always been preaching to the youngsters is that the pace at which we play is not good enough. We have to be thinking the football, making quicker decisions,” he said.
“The time we normally take in the Caribbean to play, we do not have that luxury at this level. We have to do everything at high intensity, high pace. Everything, you have to do it quickly.”
The Young Boyz began their Group AB campaign impressively, recording four consecutive victories against the US Virgin Islands, Cuba, Sri Lanka and Togo. However, they were unable to maintain that momentum, subsequently losing to Czechia, Portugal, Malaysia, Congo and Haiti.
Their final assignment against El Salvador offered another opportunity to close the tournament on a positive note, although the campaign had already delivered a demanding examination of their ability to compete against a wider range of international opposition.
Experience must translate into progress
Despite the difficult results, Purser believes the exposure gained in Azerbaijan can become an important part of the players’ long-term development.
He emphasized that the lessons will only have real value if the youngsters carry them into their training and future matches, particularly by improving their ability to operate under pressure and at a higher tempo.
“We just have to learn from this experience that FIFA has given us. It’s a valuable one, and we can only grow going forward.”
