Behind the scenes, he pulls the strings from a
distance that helped make the Golden Jaguars strike “El Dorado” in the CONCACAF World Cup football
qualifying competition.
Off the field, Colin Baker is the low profile
administrator whose work with the overseas- based Jaguars laid the foundation
for the team’s successful run through the first round group qualifiers, into
the CONCACAF semis for the first time.
From his base in Florida, USA, Baker is one of
the foreign- based officials whose contribution
helped make English professionals Ricky Shakes, Carl Cort, Leon Cort, Chris Nurse, Chris
Bourne and Jake Newton among others – players all born in England with faint links to Guyana –
part of the Jaguars setup.
He successfully took on the responsibility of
processing the players’ eligibility to represent Guyana and negotiates their
release from the clubs that pays their wages in England and beyond. Not to mention the less tedious task of
arranging flights for the English, North American and Trinidad and Tobago-based
pros, to and from the four countries where the Jags played their six first
round games.
It went almost unnoticed that the
Jaguars two-month campaign was
completed without a hitch as all the overseas pros were available on time
for the six matches and none emerged
with furrowed brows of dissatisfaction – unusual by Guyana’s standards in the past dealings
with expatriate players.
And although Baker is on the threshold of
making another major breakthrough for the Golden Jaguars and Guyana’s football
in a different but related area, he prefers to talk about the pleasure he is experiencing
with the team’s successful march so far, towards the 2014 World Cup Finals in Brazil.
“It is a combination of me and others doing
some nice things for Guyana’s football,” he states.
With a world ranking of 91, Guyana on paper
would seem easy pushovers for 21 ranked Mexico, Costa Rica at 65 and Honduras
at 69 – the teams they face in the CONCACAF semis.
But Baker vehemently disagrees and is adamant
the Jaguars will perform otherwise.
“We have several things going for us -
including committed players and the element of surprise and anything can
happen”, he declares. “Come June 8, everyone could be in for something special”.
On that date Guyana opens its campaign against
Mexico at the notorious high altitude Azteca Stadium, but the Miami-based
official is happy the CONCACAF number one team is atop the Jaguars list,
because he sees a lengthy preparation period for them.
Currently President of the Miami-based Guyana
Sports Development Foundation (GSDF), Baker is loosely described as a Guyana
Football Federation (GFF) program director for the Lady Jaguars – the national
women’s team
Such was the instant success of that team which
reached the CONCACAF women’s Gold Cup at its first attempt – Baker found himself
performing similar duties and more with the men’s squad.
Charged with the responsibility of identifying
players in the Diaspora, the foundation - a non-profit organisation,
spearheaded by Baker, has exceeded “going the
extra mile” several times over.
In reality the GSDF president could be best described as
the Golden Jaguars’ `de facto’ general manager as his influence helped
keep the pros satisfied, playing for the Jaguars in football conditions that can be described as a different world compared to their accustomed sophisticated environment, in the world’s biggest professional leagues
in England.
At the end of a successful first round, the
pros are happy to represent Guyana for virtually nothing except the pride of
playing for a country in World Cup preliminary competition.
Taking
into consideration injury risk factor, which could jeopardize their professional careers, it requires a special skill to win the pros’ commitment.
Even seasoned Trinidad and Tobago who were
eliminated at the Jaguars’ hands, were unable to secure their Premier League
stars Kenwyn Jones and Carlos Edwards for their full campaign.
“What we are seeing today did not occur
overnight, this is the result of years of work that started with the Jaguars success
at the 2006 Digicel Cup,” Baker relates.
At that he was a founding member of the Guyana World Cup Committee, formed
at the behest of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF).
Processing the eligibility of Shakes, the most
prominent of the overseas pros, was a deal, given that the England –born player
had previously represented Trinidad and Tobago and had a somewhat complicated
situation.
FIFA rules allow a player to eligible to
represent a country through paternal and maternal origin from the said nation.
And with
Guyana’s improving world ranking and about to feature in the world limelight in
Mexico and possibly beyond, the Linden
town- born Baker and company can expect
a deluge of requests from other overseas-based pros to join the Jaguars.
Baker even had a hand in the reclaiming of team
coach Jamal Shabazz for a second stint and is confident Trinidadian
will be with the team the rest of the way, following his recall from a loan agreement
by the Trinidad and Tobago federation.
The Guyana-born administrator feels that
Shabazz is a great technical and inspirational coach who has done a great job in
taking the home-based squad players’ standard to the next level.
It is that type of platform the Guyana Sports
Development Foundation hopes to build with its Scotia Bank/Pepsi schools
football training program in Guyana that has gone almost unnoticed.
The program produced seven members of the
Guyana Under-17 girls’ team which reached the second round of the Caribbean
playoffs recently.
And If the
success of female Jaguars is an indication, the
male version could be on track for more firsts on the bigger CONCACAF stage next year, with
Baker continuing to lay the foundation from afar.
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