The Tribune

By Cameron Hepple

WE worked hard, we executed the game plan that our coaches Mitsuo and Nesley Jean put together for us and we kept the US Olympic team at bay for 58 minutes in the National Stadium on Wednesday night, which I thought was a great effort.

But as you could see, at this level the smallest mistakes can be costly. You could tell some players on our team were nervous, but that is normal. The last time we played together as a team was four years ago so our composure on the ball was not going to be as clean as our opponents, all of whom are still in season in Mexico and the MLS.

Considering this, a lot of the players proved they were up to the challenge - especially the college players who impressed me like Terry Delancy, Ambry Moss and Dylan Pritchard. It was unfortunate for Justin Sealey to get injured in the opening minutes as he was the rock of our defensive line. But considering everything we dealt with prior to the match, kicking off with various players getting injured and them having to “man up” and deal with the situation was courageous.

I am especially proud of the players who are not playing in division one soccer schools like Duane Beneby, who really showed his character against a strong side. Think about it: we faced an opposition more organised with a budget ten times that of ours, with a population of 300 million, and that was their best of the best at under-23.

All of these players wake up, eat and sleep football as a living - the majority of our team had to wake up the next morning and go to work. That is the difference.

But, as a nation, we have produced some quality players with relatively nothing compared to our US counterparts. Now imagine what we could do with a budget like theirs with local businesses investing in long-term youth development, or a relationship with the US to have more youth clubs visiting the Bahamas to play tournaments.

The possibilities are endless and the time is now. There is a huge crop of talent in this country that is waiting to blossom into the next generation of top players and it is our responsibility as a nation to give them the best environment for them to succeed. Success is relative, but at a bare minimum we can create opportunities for these kids to get full athletic scholarships to universities in the US and they will have degrees to be able to contribute to making our country a better place.

Although the 5-1 score was not what we wanted, I am satisfied with the support we have been given and also the effort our team has put in for this match. We could not do this without Anton Sealey and Fred Lunn, the president and general secretary of the Bahamas Football Association. They gave us this opportunity to play the US and we have influenced another generation of players who will want to wear the Bahamian colours and represent our country.