Despite being in encampment for approximately eight days, the Golden Jaguars allegedly did not receive any form of stipend or per diem from the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) ahead of their final matches in League A of the CONCACAF Nations League.
This was disclosed by a source close to the programme, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The source further divulged that the customary signing of the player contract also did not occur during the encampment period but mere hours before the final game against Suriname.
According to the source, “The players were in camp for close to nine days and were not given any per diem, stipend, or advance payment, which is customary. No explanation was given to the players as to why they didn’t receive any money. The players would generally be paid US$50 per day, but they received nothing. Also, no contract was produced for the players to sign during the encampment. This occurred on the night of the Suriname game.
The contracts were presented to the players. Some of the players signed before the game started, and some signed after the game finished. The contract says that the players will be paid on or before November 5th. Once again, no money was given to the players.”
However, GFF President Wayne Forde, when contacted via WhatsApp messaging and asked did the GFF pay per diem and stipends for the recent Golden Jaguars encampment, disclosed that while he had retired for the day, “Will have Sueann provide feedback on this tomorrow – but I am sure we did.”
When informed that sources close to the camp are saying otherwise, Forde, several hours later, said, “As I am sure you could appreciate, the team has been extremely busy preparing for the president’s visit all day, and it slipped me completely.
I will speak to the team manager and have him provide the details to Sueann, who will provide a response.”
Up to press time, Forde has yet to confirm whether the team was paid per diem or stipends for the previous encampment. The GFF in the past has also missed contractual deadlines for player payments.
Guyana was relegated from League A of the CONCACAF Nations League in what was their debut season. Guyana went down 1-5 to Suriname on Tuesday night at the Dr. Ir. Franklin Essed Stadion in a must-win encounter.
It was Guyana’s worst-ever loss to Suriname, eclipsing the 4-0 drubbing on May 31st, 1992.
Guyana, who qualified for League A with a perfect 5-0 record, will now make their return to the second division (League B) following a tally of three losses [1-3, Guatemala, 1-3, Suriname] and a draw [2-2, Martinique] to finish with a solitary point in the season.
