Arnett focusing on youth – Golding

Arnett Gardens FC president Mark Golding said the club is planning to incorporate more young players into its squad for next season.

Golding told STAR Sports that they started the process this season, with several young players joining the team and a number of the veterans leaving the club.

"The average age of the team has been reducing and that is a process I expect to continue," Golding said.

"We have started the process of shifting away from heavy reliance on veteran players to try and win the league, to one of seeing Arnett Gardens as a club that's focusing on the development of young talent, and seeking to create opportunities for that talent to be nurtured and for young players to emerge who can make a name for themselves internationally.

"This is not going to happen in one year, it will take several years to achieve, so that is the direction in which we want to go."

He added that the process has started, with veteran players O'Neil 'Bigga' Thompson, Renae Lloyd and Kenneil Hyde all leaving the club at the start of the season.

"We brought a number of young players into the squad, players like (Zhelano) Barnes, Paul Wilson, Michaelous Martin and there are other young players that were brought into the team," Golding said.

Arnett, who finished fifth in the Red Stripe Premier League standings, were knocked out at the quarter-final stage by a very youthful Cavalier team, with an average age of 22.

"I mean, what Cavalier has achieved, they didn't achieve it overnight, because they have been working on that strategy for several years. They were actually demoted from the Premier League at one point and then they have come back," he said.

"The direction that we want to go is building a team that is a community team, and a team that's focusing on the development of young talent. We will also put more emphasis on our junior development teams," Golding said.