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Goalkeepers
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Player
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Team, Age, Caps
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Warren 'Boopie' Barrett
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(Violet Kickers), age 27 (28 on
July 9), 128 caps.
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Team captain and most-capped player in
Jamaica's international soccer history. Deeply involved in youth
programmes back home. Avowed fan of France's goalkeeper Bernard
Lama. Fearless between the sticks and a key figure in Jamaica's
campaign to reach the World Cup finals.
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Aaron 'Wild Boy' Lawrence
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(Reno), 27, 14 caps.
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Highly
acrobatic reserve goalkeeper who shone in 0-0 draw with Canada
in Vancouver during qualification. Friends say he is slowly
building a house with his earnings from soccer and would be
almost as glad to be paid directly in bricks and mortar.
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Defenders
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Player
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Team, Age, Caps
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Ricardo 'Bibi' Gardner
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(Harbour View), 19, 31 caps.
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Regarded as the baby of the team, making his senior
international debut while still a schoolboy. Substantial
dribbling skills as an overlapping defender. Impressed on
pre-finals tour of Britain and rumoured to be set for a move to
Europe after France.
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Clifton Waugh
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(Black Star) 25, 0 caps.
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Solid defender, as
yet unblooded on the international stage. Possible insurance if
front-line defenders get injured.
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Ian 'Pepe' Goodison
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(Olympic Gardens), 25. 52 caps.
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No-nonsense defender whose game against Mexico in Kingston
November 17, 1996 was most memorable to date. His header from a
corner in the dying moments of the match took Jamaica into the
final round of the CONCACAF World Cup qualifying competition. A
towering figure at 1.90m, one of the strongest characters on the
team, has alert and sharp football mind. Loves to attack. Says
his role models are pop star Michael Jackson and German striker
Juergen Klinsmann.
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Linval 'Rudi' Dixon
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(Hazard FC) 26, 103 caps.
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Pillar of
the Jamaican defence with Brown and Goodison, a courageous and
strong defender. Keen cricketer when not playing soccer.
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Durrent 'Tatty' Brown
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(Waddadah) 33 (34 on July 8), 123 caps.
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Veteran defender, solid tackler, cool under pressure and effective despite lack of height.
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Donald 'Fowlie' Stewart
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(Olympic Gardens) 22 (23 on May 3), 34 caps.
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Competent defender who has found it difficult to
command a permanent spot in the national team.
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Stephen 'Shorty' Malcolm
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(Seba United) 28, 60 caps.
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A
courageous player who over the last year has made transition
from midfield to defence. Makes up for his small stature with
courage and aggression. Back home, gradually building a taxi
business with his earnings from the game.
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Gregory Messam
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(Harbour View) 24 (25 on July 24), 56 caps.
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Stalwart defender, may struggle to keep his squad place.
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Frank Sinclair
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(Chelsea, England) 26, 5 caps.
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Attacking
defender with blistering pace, the Lambeth, England-born
Sinclair adds the invaluable grit he has gained in the English
league to the Reggae Boyz' exuberant, athletic style of soccer.
Dangerous from corners with his head.
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Winston Griffiths
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(Galaxy) 19, 4 caps.
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Promising defender,
little seen as yet on the international stage.
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Midfielders
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Player
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Team, Age, Caps
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Theodore 'Tapper' Whitmore
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(Seba) 25, 74 caps.
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One of
Jamaica's most skilful and exciting players, Whitmore is
considered a playmaker who traditionally runs at the opposing
defence, often beating them with his speed and guile. Gifted but
inconsistent.
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Peter 'Jair' Cargill
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(Harbour View) 34, 74 caps.
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Good
reader of the game who makes up for his lack of speed with
timing and vision
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Christopher Dawes
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(Galaxy) 23 (24 on May 31), 37 caps.
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Solid
presence in midfield and defence. Sent off in Jamaica's February
CONCACAF Gold Cup 2-0 victory against El Salvador.
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Robbie Earle
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(Wimbledon, England) 33, 8.
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Born in
Newcastle-under-Lyme, England, Earle came close to playing for
Glenn Hoddle's England side before deciding in mid-1997 to make
his international career with Jamaica. Leading expatriate
player, well-respected in Britain where he is captain at
Wimbledon, Earle also commentates on radio and writes a soccer
column.
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Fitzroy 'Simpo' Simpson
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(Portsmouth, England) 22, 20 caps.
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Another of the England-born expatriates. Solid tackler with good
ball distribution from midfield, Simpson keeps a pet cockroach
in Jamaica as a lucky charm.
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Darryl Powell
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(Derby County, England) 26, 1 cap.
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Born in
Lambeth in London. Made his international debut as a 68th-minute
substitute in Jamaica's lacklustre March 0-0 draw with Wales in
Cardiff. A regular starter during Derby's promotion campaign
and, after recovering from a knee injury this season he has
struggled to keep his place.
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Forwards
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Player
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Team, Age, Caps
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Andrew 'Bomber' Williams
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(Real Mona) 20, 22 caps.
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Seen in
Jamaica as the most exciting young player to emerge in recent
years. An explosive dribbler with superb ball control. His
progress was interrupted by a shoulder injury late in the World
Cup campaign.
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Deon Burton
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(Derby County, England) 21, 16 caps.
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Born in
Reading, England of a Jamaican father and English mother, Burton
is a regular with premier league side Derby. Also known as
'Neon Deon,' he joined the Reggae Boyz in mid-1997. Key man in
Jamaica's push for the World Cup finals, Burton scored in four
consecutive qualifiers, clinching two wins and two draws that
provided the team's passport to France.
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Paul Hall
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(Portsmouth, England) 25 (26 on July 3), 20 caps.
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Sixth of the England-based imports. Described by coach Simoes as
the dancehall 'DJ of the team,' Hall paid his own way, with
Burton and Simpson, to the Caribbean for a trial with the
Jamaican team and has proved a key element in the Jamaican
attack, scoring twice against Guatemala in February in the
CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament in Los Angeles.
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Marcus Gayle
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(Wimbledon, England) 27, 5 caps.
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Team mate of
Earle and a recent addition to the so-called 'UB40' contingent
of England-based players, Gayle is a big, bustling striker
capable of moments of brilliance.
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Onandi Lowe
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(Harbour View) 24, 30 caps.
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Most recently seen
on the international stage being sent off against Wales after
five minutes on the pitch for use of the elbow, Lowe is a
potentially deadly striker and a crowd favourite in Jamaica,
though recently overshadowed by English import Burton.
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Walter 'Blacka Pearl' Boyd
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(Arnett Gardens) 26, 57 caps.
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Star striker and Jamaica's highest-paid player before the recent
influx of English imports, Boyd has a shot like a cannon-ball
and a blistering turn of pace but has fallen out of favour with
coach Rene Simoes. He still has huge support among Jamaican
fans, though, and may yet find his way back to the World Cup
squad. Recent apology to Simoes for accusing him of 'playing
God' with the team won him a semi-reprieve from exile but
Simoes left him out of Jamaica's pre-France warm-up tour.
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David Johnson
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(Ipswich Town, England) 21, 0 caps.
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Jamaica-born Johnson has been the leading scorer at first
division Ipswich in the English league this season and is being
sought for international duty by Northern Ireland and England as
well as Jamaica. Johnson says he is keeping his options open but
accepted a call-up by Simoes for Jamaica's warm-up tour to
England, Iran and Saudi Arabia.
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