Montserrat national football team
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Nickname(s) | Emerald Boys | ||
---|---|---|---|
Association | Montserrat Football Association | ||
Confederation | CONCACAF (North America) | ||
Sub-confederation | CFU (Caribbean) | ||
Head coach | Willie Donachie[1] | ||
Captain | Lyle Taylor | ||
Most caps | Alex Dyer Dean Mason (18) | ||
Top scorer | Lyle Taylor (7) | ||
Home stadium | Blakes Estate Stadium | ||
FIFA code | MSR | ||
| |||
FIFA ranking | |||
Current | 177 1 (16 September 2021)[2] | ||
Highest | 165 (August 2014) | ||
Lowest | 206 (January 2011 – January 2012, June 2012, August – September 2012) | ||
First international | |||
Saint Lucia 3–0 Montserrat (Saint Lucia; 10 May 1991) | |||
Biggest win | |||
Montserrat 7–0 British Virgin Islands (Fort-de-France, Martinique; 9 September 2012) | |||
Biggest defeat | |||
Bermuda 13–0 Montserrat (Hamilton, Bermuda; 29 February 2004) |
The Montserrat national football team represents the small Caribbean island of Montserrat in the CONCACAF football region. Football is the second most popular sport in Montserrat, after Cricket. The team play at the Blakes Estate Stadium, near the village of Look Out. The Montserrat football team was formed in 1973, and has entered the World Cup qualifiers since the 2002 edition, being eliminated in the first round on each occasion.
Due to the heavy volcanic activity on the island since 1995, the team has only played a handful of matches, and most of those have been away from home. Their only victories were against neighboring Anguilla in the qualifying tournament of the 1995 Caribbean Cup, winning 3–2 at home and 1–0 away. Apart from one other draw against Anguilla, all their other matches before 2018 have been lost. Since then, however, Montserrat has proven more competitive.
On June 30, 2002, the day of the 2002 World Cup Final, Montserrat, then the lowest ranked team in the world, played against the second lowest team, Bhutan, in a friendly match known as "The Other Final", but lost 4–0.
History[]
The Montserrat national team is one of the newest in international football, having played its first senior match on 10 May 1991 during the 1991 Caribbean Cup tournament. The team suffered a 0–3 defeat to Saint Lucia at the Vieux Fort National Stadium in Saint Lucia. The team played their next match at the same venue, securing a 1–1 draw with Anguilla. Montserrat again entered the Caribbean Cup the following year but were once more knocked out in the Group Stage following heavy defeats to Saint Kitts and Nevis and Antigua and Barbuda. They were drawn against the same two teams for the 1994 Caribbean Cup, but again left the tournament at the Group Stage after conceding 17 goals in just two matches. In 1994, the Montserrat Football Association (MFA) was formed. Like all other Caribbean football teams, the MFA became a member of CONCACAF.
On 26 March 1995, Montserrat played their first ever home international match. They defeated Anguilla 3–2 in Plymouth, achieving their first win. The team beat Anguilla again in the next fixture to ensure progress to the Second Qualifying Round of the 1995 Caribbean Cup. The 1–0 win in the second leg was their only clean sheet in international football to date and is also their most recent victory. The side exited the competition in the next stage, losing 0–20 on aggregate over two legs against Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Soon afterwards, the Soufriere Hills volcano became active and the eruptions destroyed Plymouth, the capital of Montserrat, severely disrupting all football on the island. Despite the lack of football action, the MFA became a full FIFA member in 1996. However, it was a further three years until the Montserrat team played another international fixture. This was mostly because many of the island's footballers had emigrated away from the area, many of them to England.[citation needed]
After a four-year hiatus, the team entered the 1999 Caribbean Nations Cup. They were knocked out in the Preliminary Round of the tournament, losing 1–6 over two legs to the British Virgin Islands. Due to the volcanic activity, Montserrat had been unable to enter the FIFA World Cup for the 1998 tournament, so their entry into the 2002 World Cup qualification campaign was their first. Their inaugural World Cup conquest was not a success as they were defeated 0–3 away by the Dominican Republic. In the second leg, played in Trinidad and Tobago, the team fell to a 1–3 loss in front of a crowd of only 50 spectators. In 2001, the MFA visited The Football Association to raise money for a new stadium. The Blakes Estate Stadium was opened near the village of Look Out. The team's next match happened on 30 June 2002, the day of the World Cup Final, when Montserrat played Bhutan in a game known as "The Other Final". The friendly match between the two lowest-ranked teams in the world ended with a 4–0 win for Bhutan in front of 15,000 fans in Thimphu.
Montserrat entered the World Cup qualifiers once more for the 2006 edition of the competition, but again lost in the First qualifying round, this time losing 0–20 on aggregate to Bermuda. In the first leg at the Bermuda National Stadium they lost 0–13, which is their heaviest-ever defeat. The second leg, a 0–7 loss, was the first international match played at the team's new ground and was watched by 250 supporters. Montserrat then competed in the 2005 Caribbean Cup, but once more failed to progress past the Premilinary Round. In the team's most recent match in 2008, they were defeated 1–7 by Suriname in the First qualifying round of the 2010 World Cup. The match was played in Macoya because neither team's stadiums met FIFA standards.
A friendly against a Network Rail XI was played at Charlton Athletic's Valley stadium on May 19, 2012, ending in a 4–4 draw.
Montserrat achieved their first victory since 1995 and their first ever victory since joining FIFA, beating the British Virgin Islands 7–0 in a 2012 Caribbean Championship qualifying match, held in Martinique.[4]
Montserrat's fortunes changed dramatically in 2018 with the arrival of Willie Donachie and launch of the CONCACAF Nations League. The side won 3 of their four qualifying games, but missed out on qualification for the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup on goal difference after Nicaragua scored with 25 minutes to go against Barbados, to take the Emerald Boys' Gold Cup place.[5] The team went on to take second place in their group in the inaugural season with two wins, draws, and losses each, thus keeping their place at the second tier.
World rankings[]
The poor results of the team has seen them often frequenting the lower end of the FIFA World Rankings. The loss to Bhutan in "The Other Final" saw them fall to #203 in the rankings, becoming worst-ranked side in the world. After the addition of another two teams to FIFA, Montserrat achieved a new low of #205 between July and October 2004. In July 2006, they achieved a record high rank of #196 but they fell back down to #198 the following month. Success in the qualifying tournament for the CONCACAF Nations League and the first edition of the league proper saw them rise to #184.[6]
The team have also traditionally languished at the lower reaches of the unofficial World Football Elo Ratings, which ranks teams directly based on their match results.
Colours[]
Since the team's first match in 1991, Montserrat have usually worn a first-choice kit of green, either plain green[7] or green and white hoops.[8] Currently, the away kit is red jersey, shorts and socks.
Recent results and forthcoming fixtures[]
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
2021[]
24 March 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying | Antigua and Barbuda | 2–2 | Montserrat | showWillemstad, Curaçao |
28 March 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying | Montserrat | 1–1 | El Salvador | showWillemstad, Curaçao |
2 June 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying | Montserrat | 4–0 | U.S. Virgin Islands | showSan Cristóbal, Dominican Republic |
8 June 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying | Grenada | 1–2 | Montserrat | showSt. George's, Grenada |
2 July 2021 Gold Cup Q1 | Trinidad and Tobago | 6–1 | Montserrat | showFort Lauderdale, United States |
Coaching staff[]
Position | Name | Notes |
---|---|---|
Manager | Willie Donachie | |
Assistant Manager | George Dublin | |
Goalkeeping Coach | TBD | |
Head Physiotherapist | Paul Morgan |
Coaching history[]
- Paul Morris (2000–2002)
- William Lewis (2002–2004)[9][10]
- Scott Cooper (2004)
- Ruel Fox (2004)
- Cecil Lake (2008)
- Kenny Dyer (2008–2013)
- Lenny Hewlett (2013–2015)
- Willie Donachie (2018–)
Current squad[]
The following players were called up to the preliminary squad for 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification vs Trinidad and Tobago on 2 July 2021.[11]
Caps/goals correct as of 2 July 2021 after the game against Trinidad and Tobago.
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | GK | Corrin Brooks-Meade | 19 March 1988 | 16 | 0 | Oroklini-Troulloi |
13 | GK | 4 March 2004 | 0 | 0 | Enfield Town | |
23 | DF | Dean Mason | 28 February 1989 | 18 | 0 | Unattached |
5 | DF | Joey Taylor | 18 August 1997 | 15 | 1 | Cray Wanderers |
22 | DF | Craig Braham-Barrett | 1 September 1988 | 15 | 0 | Tonbridge Angels |
19 | DF | Nathan Pond | 5 January 1985 | 8 | 2 | AFC Telford United |
15 | DF | Marshall Willock | 7 April 2000 | 3 | 0 | Unattached |
16 | DF | Jernade Meade | 15 October 1992 | 2 | 0 | Dartford |
12 | MF | Alex Dyer | 11 June 1990 | 18 | 0 | Wealdstone |
11 | MF | James Comley | 24 January 1991 | 15 | 1 | Unattached |
10 | MF | Brandon Comley | 18 November 1995 | 13 | 0 | Bolton Wanderers |
6 | MF | Rohan Ince | 8 November 1992 | 5 | 1 | Woking |
4 | MF | Kaleem Simon | 8 July 1996 | 5 | 0 | Welling United |
18 | MF | Matthew Whichelow | 28 September 1991 | 5 | 0 | Unattached |
3 | MF | 7 March 2003 | 0 | 0 | Shrewsbury Town | |
7 | FW | Spencer Weir-Daley | 5 September 1985 | 14 | 3 | Spalding United |
9 | FW | Lyle Taylor (captain) | 29 March 1990 | 11 | 7 | Nottingham Forest |
20 | FW | Massiah McDonald | 20 August 1990 | 10 | 0 | Nuneaton Borough |
14 | FW | Jamie Allen | 25 May 1995 | 7 | 0 | F.C. Halifax Town |
Recent call-ups[]
The following players have been called up to the Montserrat squad in the last 12 months.
Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GK | Nic Taylor | 6 April 1991 | 3 | 0 | Croydon | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
DF | Michael Williams | 5 February 1988 | 14 | 0 | Stafford Rangers | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
DF | Calvin Petrie | 9 February 1984 | 8 | 0 | Epping Town | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
DF | Donervon Daniels | 24 November 1993 | 1 | 0 | Crewe Alexandra | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
DF | 6 March 2001 | 0 | 0 | Unattached | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE | |
MF | Adrian Clifton | 12 December 1988 | 12 | 4 | Unattached | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
MF | Solomon Henry | 21 October 1983 | 7 | 0 | Unattached | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
MF | Matty Willock | 20 August 1996 | 2 | 0 | Salford City | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
MF | 4 May 2001 | 0 | 0 | Unattached | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE | |
MF | 6 May 2002 | 0 | 0 | Unattached | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE | |
FW | Bradley Woods-Garness | 26 June 1986 | 15 | 4 | Unattached | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
FW | 1994 (age 26–27) | 0 | 0 | Erith Town | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE | |
FW | 2 October 2003 | 0 | 0 | Hartpury University | v. Trinidad and Tobago, 3 July 2021 PRE |
Player records[]
- As of 2 July 2021
- Players in bold are still active with Montserrat.
|
|
Competitive record[]
World Cup record[]
FIFA World Cup record | FIFA World Cup qualification record | ||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
1930 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
1934 | |||||||||||||||
1938 | |||||||||||||||
1950 | |||||||||||||||
1954 | |||||||||||||||
1958 | |||||||||||||||
1962 | |||||||||||||||
1966 | |||||||||||||||
1970 | |||||||||||||||
1974 | |||||||||||||||
1978 | |||||||||||||||
1982 | |||||||||||||||
1986 | |||||||||||||||
1990 | |||||||||||||||
1994 | |||||||||||||||
1998 | |||||||||||||||
2002 | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||||||||
2006 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20 | |||||||||
2010 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |||||||||
2014 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 8 | |||||||||
2018 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||||||||
2022 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 4 | |||||||||
2026 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
Total | – | 0/22 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 13 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 17 | 49 |
Gold Cup[]
Gold Cup record | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Round | Position | MP | W | D* | L | GF | GA | |
1991 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
1993 | Did not enter | ||||||||
1996 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
1998 | Did not enter | ||||||||
2000 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
2002 | |||||||||
2003 | Withdrew | ||||||||
2005 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
2007 | Did not enter | ||||||||
2009 | |||||||||
2011 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
2013 | |||||||||
2015 | |||||||||
2017 | Did not enter | ||||||||
2019 | Did not qualify | ||||||||
2021 | |||||||||
Total | 0 titles | 0/16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
CONCACAF Nations League[]
CONCACAF Nations League record | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Division | Group | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | P/R | Rank |
2019−20 | B | B | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 20th | |
2022–23 | B | To be determined | ||||||||
Total | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 20th |
Caribbean Cup record[]
Caribbean Cup record | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Round | Position | GP | W | D* | L | GS | GA |
1989 | Did not enter | |||||||
1990 | Did not enter | |||||||
1991 | Did not qualify | |||||||
1992 | Did not qualify | |||||||
1993 | Did not enter | |||||||
1994 | Did not qualify | |||||||
1995 | Did not qualify | |||||||
1996 | Did not enter | |||||||
1997 | Did not enter | |||||||
1998 | Did not enter | |||||||
1999 | Did not qualify | |||||||
2001 | Did not qualify | |||||||
2005 | Did not qualify | |||||||
2007 | Did not enter | |||||||
2008 | Did not enter | |||||||
2010 | Did not qualify | |||||||
2012 | Did not qualify | |||||||
2014 | Did not qualify | |||||||
2017 | Did not enter | |||||||
Total | 0 Titles | 0/19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Head-to-head record[]
- As of 24 March 2021[12]
Against | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | GF | GA | GD | % Won |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Anguilla | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 7 | −1 | 50% |
Antigua and Barbuda | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 20 | −14 | 0% |
Aruba | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 100% |
Barbados | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0% |
Belize | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 33% |
Bermuda | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20 | −20 | 0% |
Bhutan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 0% |
Bonaire | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
British Virgin Islands | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 33% |
Cayman Islands | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 100% |
Curaçao | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 0% |
Dominican Republic | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 25% |
El Salvador | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 0% |
Martinique | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0% |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 29 | −27 | 0% |
Saint Lucia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 33% |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 27 | −27 | 0% |
Suriname | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 14 | −12 | 0% |
U.S. Virgin Islands | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 100% |
Total | 45 | 9 | 7 | 29 | 45 | 167 | −122 | 20% |
Note: teams in italic indicates that teams are not FIFA members.
References[]
- ^ FIFA.com. "Member Association - Montserrat - FIFA.com". www.fifa.com. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 16 September 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2021.
- ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ^ "Concacaf". Concacaf.globalsportsmedia.com. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013. Retrieved 7 December 2013.
- ^ Montserrat miss out on first Gold Cup qualification Euronews. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
- ^ FIFA.com. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking - Ranking Table - FIFA.com". www.fifa.com. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
- ^ "The Montserrat Miracle Men March On". PressFrom – UK. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- ^ FIFA.com. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ – Teams – Montserrat – Profile". FIFA.com. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- ^ "2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan ™". FIFA.com. Retrieved 7 December 2013.
- ^ "CNNSI.com – CNNSI.com's complete coverage of the FIFA World Cup – Bhutan routs Montserrat in 'other final' – Sunday June 30, 2002 05:39 AM". Sportsillustrated.cnn.com. 30 June 2002. Retrieved 7 December 2013.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "World Football Elo Ratings". www.eloratings.net. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
External links[]
- Montserrat national football team
- Caribbean national association football teams