Light at the end of the tunnel for western football – MBU boss

JUST THREE months after taking the post of chairman of Montego Bay United, Yoni Epstein said there have been major strides in rebuilding the club to its former glory.

Epstein said he remains committed to bringing ‘football back to the west’ and work is being done to bring Montego Bay United to the heights of its once gloried past.

“As we are continuing to rebuild Montego Bay and football in the west, we want to ensure that the west gets what it deserves as a well-known football culture and a part of the country that has created tremendous football talent over the years.”

Montego Bay United has a rich history in the nation’s top division, the club having won the national title four times, with their last two titles coming in the 2013-2014 season and the 2015-2016 season.

But in recent years, there has been a decline.

Montego Bay United were relegated at the end of the 2019 season, earning promotion to the Jamaica Premier League in 2022.

LEAGUE STANDINGS

The club sits eighth in the league standings, with three points separating them from a spot in the top six. Epstein said that with recruitment in the January transfer window, he believes the team is ready to push for a spot in the playoffs reserved for those top six teams.

“Firstly, as you may have seen, we have brought in seven new players into the squad in the January transfer window. That was a direct investment in deepening the squad so that we can be more competitive. As well as preparing ourselves to be more competitive to get into the top six, this is to get into the playoffs. That’s always been our goal since we started the season, and we’ve effectively executed that, in our opinion.”

But a playoff spot is only one phase of the club’s rebuilding plan.

Epstein explained that the club has also launched their academy, which will bring more football opportunities for youth players in the region.

“The other plan was starting the youth academy,” he said.

“The true development of a football club really starts with the youth and we’ve started our academy from five years old going all the way up to 17 years old. We’re running sessions four days a week; Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday.”

“We have over 40 kids already from the community that are both kids paying to be a part of the academy and kids that have been accepted through a scholarship based upon talent and circumstances. The academy, we feel, is the biggest investment into the future of football in the west.”

Source: The Gleaner