SHAYNE FAIRMAN, STAR Writer

SOME sports, it seems, get financial assistance, funding, and sponsorship, much more quickly than others here in Jamaica, contends Jason Ricketts, public relations officer and blind cricketer, who represents the country's seven-time victorious team, which was unable to defend their regional title this year, due to a lack of funding.

That team was scheduled to leave the island last week for the regional competition, but a disappointed Ricketts, told STAR Sports that the players could only muster $1.6 million of the $3.3 million needed to attend the tournament in St Lucia.

With the disappointment, he admitted, came a hard lesson: "We might have to start fundraising activities early next year."

"It's not easy being blind," said Ricketts. "Very few players work, we get no prize money when we play, but we play because of love for it."

Despite there being more than 30 organisations which sponsor sports locally and subventions provided by the Sports Development Foundation (SDF), Minister with Responsibility for Sports Natalie Neita-Headley maintains that not all sports will get the sponsorship they need, when needed.

"I believe the corporations tend to select which sporting activity they want to attach themselves to, and so the marketing capacity of their associations really have to be enhanced to a point where they have to appeal to corporate sponsors to come on board for that particular sport," she said.

When quizzed about whether blind cricketers were in a less marketable sport, she said, "Discussions took place, and we are seeking to assist them develop that kind of (marketing) capacity."

Despite falling under the auspices of the Jamaica Cricket Association, the blind cricketers claimed to have gotten no assistance from that organisation.

The only funding, they said, came from the SDF, which provided a $1.6 million subvention.

"SDF does support 42 or 43 sporting associations and we provide subventions when our teams have to go off to international competition ... just like any other team in the world," said Neita-Headley.