Ricketts mourns Larmond’s passing Hails football administrator’s potential

President of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), Michael Ricketts, has described the death of Manchester Football Association (MFA) president Craig Larmond as a significant loss to Jamaican football.

“We’ve lost someone with real potential who would impact national football,” he said.

Fifty-year-old Larmond, who died in hospital on July 25, was laid to rest in Manchester on the weekend.

The JFF boss said the late football administrator had tremendous potential “to make an even greater contribution to the sport nationally”, and the relatively young age made his passing particularly difficult, given the trajectory of his career and the relationship they had developed.

He noted his journey from community leadership to the top of football administration in Manchester had earned him considerable respect and confidence within the JFF.

“He served on national delegations maybe twice. And that was the level of confidence that I would have had in Craig,” Ricketts said.

Larmond’s progression, he added, was testament to his commitment and leadership qualities, describing his movement from community leader to football association president as a noteworthy achievement.

“He would have been part of a JFF contingent that would have travelled during (the Reggae Boyz) World Cup campaign,” the JFF president remembered.

Larmond developed from early involvement at the community level through his work with the MFA, to eventually becoming its president.

According to the JFF president, Larmond’s growing role in the sport meant he was being considered for greater responsibilities at the national level, and could have been given opportunities to serve Jamaica’s football at the highest level.

“Craig would have shown his ability, not just the ability, the love, the passion, the loyalty, the commitment to serve not just his community and not just his parish, but to all national programmes,” Ricketts reasoned.

He said Larmond’s death left not only the Manchester football community mourning, but also the wider Jamaican football fraternity.