SHELDON Phillips, general secretary of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) has dismissed the notion that the recent formation of the West Indies Football Association (WIFA) will cause tension in local football.
WIFA, headed by former Scottish youth footballer James Baird, recently became a member of the NF-Board, an umbrella association for nations/territories not affiliated with FIFA.
The NF-Board is the organiser of the VIVA World Cup which will be held later this year.
Baird explained that he has been in informal discussions with Phillips as well as TTFA president Raymond Tim Kee to explain his plans and clarify any ambiguity.
Speaking to Phillips yesterday, he expressed optimism that both bodies can exist simultaneously without any rift.
“It’s no different from Catalonia,” Phillips stated, referring to the autonomous community in Spain which has its own football team with some of its players also representing the Spanish national team.
Some of the more prominent footballers to play for both teams include Barcelona FC stars Xavi Hernandez, Cesc Fabregas, Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique.
“It’s not a situation where we view them as a threat. FIFA is comfortable with that (players playing for both ‘countries’). If the situation provides more opportunity to footballers then that is something I would look at favourably,” Phillips explained, while speaking in his personal capacity.
The TTFA general secretary explained though that their Executive has not discussed the situation formally as they have not yet received any official presentation from WIFA.
Meanwhile, with the 6th VIVA World Cup scheduled to kick off later this year and the West Indies participating for the very first time, Baird revealed that he his looking for a nice blend of experienced and young players to represent the region.
“In terms of picking the team, there are a few things we have to look at initially, obviously budget will come into it because we may not be able to call on all the guys from abroad. We will probably have a good mixture of experienced guys who’ve played throughout the world and we’ll combine it with some of the younger guys from the Caribbean islands.
We do have a selection panel who will be involved in that,” he explained.
Baird, 30-years-old, is calling on corporate TT and others to get involved as he believes this team will be beneficial to this country and the region with the opportunities it is expected to provide.
“For this all to work, we need a lot of help from everybody we can. Rome wasn’t built in a date so anyone who wants to get involved — play, be a sponsor, water boy — come on board and get in contact with us.
We are looking for a home venue at the moment and there’s a lot going on at the moment. So, get involved and please come and support the West Indies Players Association,” he declared.
Baird also called on any aspiring coaches/organisers who are willing to be a part of the project and learn from experienced persons to get in contact with them. For more information visit www.wifa.ca, check them out on Facebook at “West Indies Football Association” or email westindiesfa@gmail.com.