General Secretary of the Antigua & Barbuda Football Association Gordon “Banks” Derrick
The controversial “home for football” here in Antigua will be getting a visit from President of the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA), Joseph Sepp Blatter in September when he, along with his General Secretary (GS) Jerome Valke, will be visiting the FIFA funded Goal Project located at Tomlinsons.
This is according to General Secretary of the Antigua & Barbuda Football Association (ABFA), Gordon “Banks” Derrick, who told OBSERVER Sports that the duo will be here to assess the completed first phase of the “home for football” and are expected inaugurate works done to date.
“President of FIFA, Sepp Blatter and General Secretary Jerome Valke will be visiting Antigua & Barbuda to inaugurate the goal project,” the general secretary said.
The visit could also serve as incentive to the ABFA who are presently seeking to have the second phase of the project approved by FIFA.
“We are now getting the necessary paper-work in place for the approval of the second phase but that will take about two to three months before it is approved; so they are just coming to inaugurate what is there at the moment which is the first phase which is the field (playing area), lighting and fencing,” he said.
The first phase of the controversial “home for football” included the playing surface, fence and lighting while the second phase will consist of dormitories, team locker rooms and other infrastructures.
The project, which started under the presidency of Ralph Potter over 10 years ago, failed to evolve within the originally set time frame after which, questions were raised about the slow pace at which works were being done.
Monies that were allotted to complete the first phase of the proposed football home had been depleted long before the completion of the said phase, prompting FIFA to release monies originally allotted for the second phase in order to accommodate the completion of the project’s first phase.
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