With the integrity of the nation's top competition, the Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL), under a cloud of controversy, and the latest Coca-Cola rankings revealing that the Reggae Boyz have taken a significant nose-dive, falling to 100 in the rankings, there is no question that Jamaica's football is at an eerie crossroads.

It must be embarrassing for the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) to accept that even Antigua & Barbuda, a virtual unknown outside of the CONCACAF region, are ranked above them, but I want to see it as a wake-up call to the nation. It tells us that our house is not in good order and needs to be tidied up.

There is a common saying that, when one hits rock bottom, the only way one can go from there is up. There is no question that we have hit the proverbial rock bottom, so it is definitely time for the Antigua & Barbuda reality check, which should spark the beginning of a new drive to regain our once-illustrious standing on the global stage.

While we might be able to regain some amount of respectability in the upcoming eight-team 2014 Caribbean Cup final phase, which will be played in Montego Bay from November 9-18, I don't believe that will be enough to restore credibility to a product which was once good enough to take us to the World Cup.

I believe the restructuring of our football needs to start at the grassroots level and go right through to the senior level and should encompass the entire island. At present, I believe a lot of good talent is being suffocated by a crowd of mediocrity or is being left on the sidelines because of a lack of opportunities.

Exposure for youngsters

At the schoolboy level, I think things are okay, as we could not have asked ISSA for a better product than the daCosta Cup and the Manning Cup, which basically covers the entire island, providing opportunities for exposure for all the youngsters who have the capacity to earn a place on their respective school teams.

Additionally, through the efforts of sponsors, who are becoming increasingly innovative, and the media, which is extremely friendly to football at this level, it is unlikely that any good player with the capacity to go far will not be granted the kind of exposure needed to open the doors to exciting possibilities.

What is needed now is the creation of an avenue to help the promising youngsters progress after graduating from the high-school system. At present, only the youngsters from the few parishes that have teams competing in the RSPL have an opportunity to move from schoolboy football into top-flight football.

Since ISSA is essentially carrying the baton for the JFF at the 12-18 age-group levels, I believe the JFF should take on the responsibility of creating a national parish competition for youngsters in the age group 18-21, creating a kind of nursery for the national team and the RSPL teams.

In regard to the senior ranks, I am hoping that the JFF will put procrastination aside and stick to their proposed timetable to introduce the franchise system. Unless we get the entire nation involved in senior club football, the FIFA rankings will continue to be like a greased pole for Jamaica.

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