THE Guyana Football Federation (GFF) was fined 4 000 Swiss francs (G$859 000) for playing Matthew Briggs during their 2-0 win over Grenada in an International Friendly on March 29, 2015 at the Guyana National Stadium.FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee has notified the GFF that it has conducted an investigation on the participation of Briggs with the representative team of the GFF in the International ‘A’ friendly match.
According to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee who met on October 9 and deliberated over the matter before handing down the sanction, “the GFF is liable for the violation of Article 5 of the Regulations governing the Application of the Statutes as well as Article 55. 2 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, for having fielded the player Matthew Briggs, without holding the Guyanese nationality”.
Pernel Schultz had led Guyana to a 2-0 victory over Grenada, scoring both goals in the first half (18th and 38th minutes).
However, a release from the GFF pointed out that FIFA further noted that the match is declared a loss by forfeit by Guyana (3-0), citing articles of the FIFA Disciplinary Code”
The GFF was also ordered to take all appropriate measures in order to guarantee that the FIFA regulations are strictly complied with.
The 24-year-old Briggs, the youngest player to feature in the English Premier League (EPL) with Fulham FC, got his first senior International cap when he represented Guyana against Grenada, leading up to the 2018 World Cup Qualifiers.
Briggs, who qualified to represent Guyana through his grandmother, had represented England at the U-16 through U-21 levels but never broke into the country’s senior national side.