Sport

Boys' Town on the move

By NODLEY WRIGHT, Freelance Writer

WHEN THE 2005-2006 version of the Wray and Nephew Premier League kicks off in late August or early September, the newly-promoted Boys' Town expect to compete on an equal footing. This is according to coach Andrew Price.

One of the ways in which the club, which was a powerhouse in the island during the '70s and '80s, hopes to compete is in infrastructure. Already, they have been recognised as having one of the best football fields in the country but they will not stop there.

"We intend to meet the requirements that the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) has for the hosting of games such as stands to seat at least 2,500 people, press area and turnstile," Price told STAR SPORTS last week.

"We had a meeting with the Ashtrom people as well as Dr. Winston Davidson, chairman of the Boys' Town board, last week and among the things we discussed, were the putting in of stands on a phased basis," Price added.

The first set of stands will be erected adjacent to the Collie Smith Pavilion and should seat about 2,000-3,000 people. Turnstiles and a press area will also be in place as well as having the fans properly separated from the playing area.

Construction on the stands, Price said, should start in another two to three weeks.

"The people who will be doing the work have a track record of delivering this kind of work on time so we are expecting to have it ready in the last week of August or the first week of September," said the man who has been associated with Boys' Town for almost 20 years.

While Price did not say, STAR SPORTS learnt that the seats have already been sourced as the seats from the recently-dismantled Air Jamaica stands at Sabina Park, which is being remodelled for World Cup cricket in 2007.

The seats from Sabina Park will not be the only thing that the Boys' Town grounds will have with Sabina Park, as according to Price, there are also plans to host a big cricket match at the grounds to celebrate the achievements of one of their greatest products, cricketer Collie Smith, who represented Jamaica and the West Indies.