By Kemoh Sesay
As preparations gather pace for Leone Stars weekend encounter with the Pirates of Seychelles in a preliminary round fixture for the Africa Nations Cup tournament in Morocco in ..., Coach Jonathan Mckinstry has confirmed that four of the players the players he called up have been ruled out of Saturday’s match.
The players are Mohamed Kamara (Bolton Wanderers, England), Alhassan Crespo Kamara (Orebo, Sweden), Alhaji Adriano Kamara (Norrkoping, Sweden) and Michael Lahoud (Philadelphia Union, USA).
Coach Mckinstry said he spoke with club directors of the players and he was informed that they had big games coming so they will not be able to release them.
The other two players are goalkeeper Christian Caulker and Ibrahim Marcel Koroma who've been suspended by the SLFA and the Ministry of Sports on allegation of match fixing.
He said, the was not part of the FIFA calendar, "so clubs are not compelled to send their players on non- FIFA calendar dates... I want to focus on the game, it is unfortunate that four players will not be coming, this is not something we were prepared to have but it is what it is and we have to move on with the game.
On his assessment of the players, the coach said he was pleased with the first day of training. "I worked with the early group of players that came in and their energy level is good, the players are in good spirit, they look fresh and ready for the match on Saturday".
Mckinstry said the "positive nature about the team brings good atmosphere among the group and that is very pleasing to see as a coach because when the players are upbeat and lively it makes the training session more enjoyable for everybody".
Asked about the quality of the pitch in the rainy season, the coach described the situation as "a challenge for everybody, but the players know the pitch and it will not be a hindrance but we hope the weather holds up a bit. We are focusing on the game and they know that it is the surface we have been training on".
(C) Politico 17/07/14
