Technical Directors Workshop at Hilton ends

THE FIFA Technical Directors Workshop came to a close at the Hilton Trinidad on Friday, with participants presented with certificates after five days of intense discussions, bilateral meetings, analysis and interactive sessions both on and off the field.

FIFA head of technical development services Jurg Nepfer was at the first half of the workshop, accompanied by FIFA group leader Roberto Perna, FIFA technical consultants Willi Ruttensteiner, Rodrigo Kenton and Lenny Lake, local technical director and FIFA TD expert Anton Corneal and FIFA regional development manager Marlon Glean.

Nepfer said. “We wanted to orchestrate this workshop on four pillars. One of those was to know more about the situations of the technical directors here; we wanted to give them some tools for their operations on a daily basis with handbooks and hope they can work a little bit easier with their daily routines; thirdly we had bilateral meetings with each technical director to elaborate specific and tailor made systems for them and finally we used practical analysis with match analysis, training observation and coaching education observation.”

The practical sessions took place during training sessions and game situations with the TT Women’s team, the Elite Under-15 boys’ team and Prisons FC.

“With this we hope we can improve the knowledge of the technical directors in the member associations.

It is part of a process and not an isolated event and we want to be closer to these technical directors and support them. We also want to do some monitoring to be able to assist them better in their work for the development of football in their specific countries,” Nepfer added.

Perna, who spoke at the closing on Friday, added that football was different in each country.

“The coach and the technical director of an association are not necessary competitors, even through their roles are different. Of course they must work together but there are clear roles and responsibilities and they must work together,” he said.

“This course had a nice atmosphere. The technical director is really at the top of the pyramid. There is really quality here and a lot of potential.

“This course has not come to an end but is the start of your life as technical directors. Following our bilateral meetings here, we will put together all the key points and send the action plans next week to all the national associations, and this is a very important part of this course.”

Participants included John Reilly of the British Virgin Islands, Eustace Bailey (US Virgin Islands), Wendell Downswell (Jamaica), Anton Corneal (TT), Russell Latapy (TT), Dennis Lawrence (TT), Desiree Sergeant (TT), Ian Greenwood (Guyana), Biswajeet Kali (Suriname), Alexander Gonzales (Cayman Islands), Marlon Glean (FIFA regional development manager), Lenny Lake and Rodrigo Kenton (FIFA) and Jeffrey Hazel of St Kitts-Nevis.