Montserrat national football team
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.
| 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 | Dean Mason (14) | ||
| Top scorer | Jaylee Hodgson Bradley Woods-Garness (4) | ||
| Home stadium | Blakes Estate Stadium | ||
| FIFA code | MSR | ||
| |||
| FIFA ranking | |||
| Current | 183  | ||
| Highest | 165 (August 2014) | ||
| Lowest | 206 (January 2011 – January 2012, June 2012, August – September 2012) | ||
| First international | |||
.svg.png){kind=small}  (Saint Lucia; 10 May 1991) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
 (Fort-de-France, Martinique; 9 September 2012) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 (Hamilton, Bermuda; 29 February 2004) | |||
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 2012 have been lost.
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 jokingly 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.
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.[3]
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.[4]
Montserrat all-time record against all nations
- As of 19 November 2019[5]
| Against | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | GF | GA | GD | % Won |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 7 | −1 | 50% |
 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | −1 | 0% |
 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 100% |
 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0% |
 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 33% |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20 | −20 | 0% |
 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 0% |
 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 6 | +2 | 33% |
 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 100% |
 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 0% |
 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | −4 | 25% |
 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 0% |
 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0% |
 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 10 | −9 | 0% |
 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 33% |
 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | −7 | 0% |
 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 14 | −12 | 0% |
 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 100% |
| Total | 37 | 9 | 5 | 23 | 38 | 113 | −75 | 24% |
Note: teams in italic indicates that teams are not FIFA members.
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. As of February 2019 Montserrat are #200 out of 211 in the rankings, just ahead of Sri Lanka.[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.
2019
| 7 September Nations League B | Montserrat | 2–1 | | Lookout, Montserrat |
| 15:00 |
|
Report |
|
Stadium: Blakes Estate Stadium Referee: Sergio Reyna (Guatemala) |
| 10 September Nations League B | Montserrat | 1–1 | | Lookout, Montserrat |
| 16:00 |
|
Report | Stadium: Blakes Estate Stadium Referee: Nelson Salgado (Honduras) |
| 12 October Nations League B | Montserrat | 0–2 | | Lookout, Montserrat |
| 22:00 | Report | Stadium: Blakes Estate Stadium Referee: Juan Calderón (Costa Rica) |
| 15 October Nations League B | Dominican Republic | 0–0 | | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic |
| 19:15 | Report | Stadium: Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez Referee: Raúl Castro Zuniga (Honduras) |
| 16 November Nations League B | El Salvador | 1–0 | | San Salvador, El Salvador |
| 22:00 |
|
Report | Stadium: Estadio Cuscatlán Referee: Oliver Vergara (Panama) |
| 19 November Nations League B | Saint Lucia | 0–1 | | Gros Islet, Saint Lucia |
| 17:30 | Report |
|
Stadium: Darren Sammy Cricket Ground Referee: Oshane Nation (Jamaica) |
Current squad
The following players were called up for the CONCACAF Nations League vs
Caps/goals correct as of 19 November 2019 after the game against
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Corrin Brooks-Meade | 19 March 1988 | 12 | 0 | Unattached |
| 21 | GK | Micah Hilton | 2 October 1985 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2 | DF | Michael Williams | 5 February 1988 | 13 | 0 |  |
| 5 | DF | Joey Taylor | 18 August 1997 | 10 | 1 | |
| 22 | DF | Craig Braham-Barrett (vice-captain) | 1 September 1988 | 10 | 0 | |
| 19 | DF | Nathan Pond | 5 January 1985 | 4 | 1 | Unattached |
| 15 | DF | Marshall Willock | 7 April 2000 | 2 | 0 |  |
| 23 | MF | Dean Mason | 28 February 1989 | 14 | 0 | |
| 18 | MF | Alex Dyer | 11 June 1990 | 13 | 0 |  |
| 11 | MF | James Comley (vice-captain) | 24 January 1991 | 10 | 1 | |
| 10 | MF | Brandon Comley | 18 November 1995 | 9 | 0 | |
| 14 | MF | Solomon Henry | 21 October 1983 | 7 | 0 | Unattached |
| 12 | MF | Matthew Whichelow | 28 September 1991 | 3 | 0 | |
| 8 | FW | Bradley Woods-Garness | 26 June 1986 | 13 | 4 | |
| 7 | FW | Spencer Weir-Daley | 5 September 1985 | 12 | 3 | |
| 20 | FW | Massiah McDonald | 20 August 1991 | 10 | 0 | |
| 13 | FW | Jamie Allen | 25 May 1995 | 2 | 0 | |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DF | Calvin Petrie | 9 February 1984 | 8 | 0 | |
v. |
| DF | Dajour Buffonge | 29 January 1996 | 1 | 0 | |
v. |
| DF | D'Andre Willock | 18 February 2002 | 0 | 0 | Unattached | v. |
| MF | Adrian Clifton | 21 February 1989 | 9 | 2 | |
v. |
| MF | Ahijah Daley | 4 May 2001 | 0 | 0 | |
v. |
| MF | Mark Rogers | 6 May 2002 | 0 | 0 | |
v. |
| MF | Shemarie Perkins | 4 April 2002 | 0 | 0 | |
v. |
| FW | Seigel Rodney | 2 October 2003 | 0 | 0 | |
v. |
| FW | Lyle Taylor (captain) | 29 March 1990 | 6 | 1 | |
v. |
Coaching staff
| Position | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Manager |  |
|
| Assistant Manager | |
|
| Assistant Manager |  |
|
| Goalkeeping Coach | |
|
| Senior Physiotherapist |  |
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 | |
 |
Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
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.svg.png){kind=small}  |
Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | ||||||||
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20 | |||||||||
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1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | |||||||||
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2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 8 | |||||||||
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2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | |||||||||
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To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
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To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
| Total | – | 0/21 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 9 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 8 | 45 | |
Gold Cup record
Coaches
References
- FIFA.com. "Member Association - Montserrat - FIFA.com". www.fifa.com. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
- "Concacaf". Concacaf.globalsportsmedia.com. Archived from the original on 2013-12-13. Retrieved 2013-12-07.
- Montserrat miss out on first Gold Cup qualification Euronews. 25 March 2019. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
- "World Football Elo Ratings". www.eloratings.net. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- FIFA.com. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking - Ranking Table - FIFA.com". www.fifa.com. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
- "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.
- CONCACAF Nations League.
- "2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan ™". FIFA.com. Retrieved 2013-12-07.
- "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. 2002-06-30. Retrieved 2013-12-07.
External links
- RSSSF archive of Montserrat national team results
- National Football Teams
- Guardian article which refers to Montserrat's 2012 match against a Network Rail XI
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