KINGSTON, Jamaica,  (CMC) – Jamaica’s Football Federation has devised programmes for its players to ensure they remain in shape, as the regional and international calendar remains on pause due to the coronavirus pandemic outbreak.

The governing body’s president, Michael Ricketts, said there had been coordination between trainers and head coach Theodore Whitmore on developing plans for players.

“Our technical team has been having constant meetings. The last one was last week Thursday, and they have been looking at ways and means, keeping players fit,” Ricketts told the Gleaner newspaper here.

“So the physical trainers – Jason Henry and Lamar Morgan – along with coach Theodore Whitmore, have worked out a programme for the locally based players in order to keep them ready.

“We are just hoping that when CONCACAF give us the green light, we will be in a position to hit the track running.”

CONCACAF, the continental governing body for football in the hemisphere, has been forced to postpone several tournaments due to the threat of COVID-19, leaving the Caribbean without any ongoing tournaments.

The first and second rounds of the Nations League have already been scrapped along with the quarter-finals of the Champions League and the Caribbean Club Championship and Club Shield.

Of importance are the qualifiers for the 2020 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, which are set for late August and early September.

Ricketts said while the future remained unclear because of the virus outbreak, it was important the JFF kept the national side at the ready.

“There are great levels of uncertainty, and nobody knows what will happen. It all depends on how best the virus is brought under control,” he said.

“We have not heard from CONCACAF as it relates to the World Cup qualifiers, which are scheduled for late August, but we want to ensure that we are ready if we are called upon.”