The Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) unveil new senior team head coach Stephen Hart tomorrow, but in the same breath have lost the services of former co-head coach Jamaal Shabazz.
Hart was selected to replace Shabazz and co-coach Hutson Charles just ahead of the CONCACAF Gold Cup, which is set for July 8-28 in the US. The local football body hired as its director of football veteran Dutch coach Leo Beenhakker, who successfully qualified the “Soca Warriors” for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
The appointment of former Canada coach, San Fernando-born Hart, means the demotion of Charles and Shabazz to, at best, the roles of assistant coaches. Shabazz, however, has rejected the offer.
“I will not be part of the new set up. The TTFA president and general secretary knows my position on the matter,” former joint T&T head-coach Shabazz said. “And this is no disrespect to Mr. Stephen Hart, because he will know why I cannot accept. This is a matter of process and principle, it’s not an ego thing.”
Shabazz feels the TTFA hierarchy treated the former coach staff with total disrespect in the sudden switch to T&T’s technical team.
“A lot has been said of the former dictatorship in local football, and this new leadership have talked about transparency and collective consultation. However their actions thus far reflects a total contrast to their words,” Shabazz declared.
The Caledonia AIA technical director pointed out that he and Charles led T&T to the Gold Cup “without salary for six months, bearing with patience and keeping the players motivated”. He felt it “disrespectful” of new TTFA general secretary Sheldon Phillips to hire new coaches, and “hide behind” Beenhakker’s reputation.
Shabazzz recounted that with two months on his contract with Guyana and an offer of renewal, he accepted a request from TTFA president Raymond Tim Kee to join the national team. Shabazz lamented that local coaches always seems to get the “short end of the stick.”
“Look at this, we work with little or no resources, accept when money is low and give our best, yet they have no regard for that. Imagine Otto Psfister came here, get all his money and Russell Latapy who worked before him has to wait on his money.”
Shabazz insists he is not bitter and also urges the national population to throw their support behind the national team.
“This Gold Cup is very important to the country because if we do well, we can go up in the FIFA rankings and our players can qualify to get work permits in the top leagues in Europe again. ”I will learn a great lesson about human beings and myself from this experience, it was a most interesting episode in my life.”
Shabazz jabs at TTFA.
T&T Guardian Reports.
When new T&T Football Association (TTFA) Director of Football, Holland’s Leo Beenhakker, and newly hired Soca Warriors coach, T&T-born Canadian Stephen Hart, meet with members of the former T&T team technical staff, there will be one notable absentee, Jamaal Shabazz.
The former Guyanese national coach and technical director of local club, Neal & Massy Caledonia AIA, who was axed as T&T co-head coach along with Hutson “Barber” Charles, was invited to be interviewed by the Dutch legend for an assistant coaching role within the new set-up along with Charles, who has been to FIFA Under-17 and Under-20 World Cups as an assistant coach, and Derek King, who once led local club Joe Public to a record five domestic titles in one season in the Digicel Pro League.
However, Shabazz has made it clear to the T&T Football Association and its president Raymond Tim Kee that he will not operate as an assistant coach. “I will not be part of the new set up. The TTFA president and General Secretary Sheldon Phillips knows my position on the matter.
I will not even work under Calder Hart, much less Stephen Hart,” joked Shabazz. “And this is no disrespect to Stephen Hart because he will know why I cannot accept.”
“This is a matter of process and principle, it’s not an ego thing. We are learning everyday and the education process in football is forever. But throughout my life I have been faced with situations where you have got to take an action because conscience forces you to do what you think is right.”
Shabazz, who along with Charles helped T&T qualify for its first Concacaf Gold Cup appearance in eight years following a second place finish in the Digicel Caribbean Cup last December, feels that the TTFA hierarchy treated the former staff with total disrespect in the manner in which they have made changes to the national team on the eve of the Gold Cup.
He added that he is owed close to US$31,000 for his six months of work with the senior team, inclusive of bonuses, match fees and per diem. “We qualified a team to the Gold Cup with no resources without salary for six months, bearing with patience and keeping the players motivated.
How could they negotiate to bring in new people, local or foreign, without giving us a cheque. “It’s very disrespectful of Mr Sheldon Phillips to bring two coaches to our shores, arrange packages for them and they have not paid us for the last six months.
Then hide behind the reputation of Mr Beenhakker and the fact that Mr Hart was born in Trinidad, who had a good track record with Canada. “Does that change the principle involved,” questioned Shabazz. “They need to pay me my money, because I am not taking this lightly.”
Shabazz complained that local coaches always seem to come out with the short end of the stick. “Look at this, we work with little or no resources, accept when money is low and give our best yet they have no regard for that. Imagine Otto Psfister came here, get all his money and Russell Latapy, who worked before him has to wait on his money.”
Shabazz took Guyana to the semifinal stage of the Concacaf Qualifiers for the 2014 South Africa FIFA World Cup, ironically the same level reached by Stephen Hart with Canada. He left with two months left on his contract with the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) and an offer of a renewal, to respond to TTFA’s President Raymond Tim Kee’s call to arms.
“My friend Anton Corneal and Tim Kee asked me to come in and assist Hutson and my excitement and enthusiasm to work for my country at the highest level made me react with my heart rather than my head. So while we agreed on a salary, I worked without a contract which is not what a high level coach would have done.
I am accustomed to working with very little resources so I ignored to dot the I’s and cross the T’s,” said Shabazz, whose success with Caledonia AIA and Guyana reflects that he punches way over his weight in terms of resources and results in football.
But Shabazz insists he is not bitter and urges the national population to throw their support behind the national team. “I accept that the world of football is about results and the level of deceit and treachery that exists makes me know that like politics, football has a morality of its own.
This Gold Cup is very important to the country because if we do well, we can go up in the FIFA rankings and our players can qualify to get work permits in the top leagues in Europe again. I will learn a great lesson about human beings and myself from this experience.
It was a most interesting episode in my life.” The coach from Morvant Laventille however had some stern words for the new TTFA hierarchy. “A lot has been said of the former dictatorship in local football and this new leadership has talked about transparency and collective consultation.
However their actions thus far reflect a total contrast to their words. Football is our life and it has a social value greater than winning and losing on the field. We will not accept an administration that intends to recolonise us or make us feel less than who we are both as football technicians and human beings. The football fraternity must have a say in how our affairs are run, we will not accept the cloak and dagger approach.”