Jamaican football officials saddened by King's exit

Kingston (Jamaica), Nov 7 (IANS/CMC):

Some football officials in Jamaica say they are disappointed with the decision by England based striker Marlon King to end his international career.

President of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) Horace Burrell and former national coach Carl Browne are among officials lamenting king’s decision to quit, reports CMC.

Birmingham City player, King was being targeted by a JFF delegation visiting England to recruit players to bolster the team’s chances of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil.

“I am sorry to hear how it has ended because Marlon, then, was a very committed national player and the performances that we got from him were just unbelievable,” said Brown, who also coached King.

“It is really sad to see that a career that offered a whole lot has ended the way it has now. I hope it is a lesson to all of us that in the future we can prevent endings like these.”

King announced his resignation Monday, a day ahead of a proposed meeting with the Burrell led delegation aimed at mending fences with the striker who seems to have been alienated from the team.

The 32-year-old has not participated in any of Jamaica’s CONCACAF semi-final round matches since serving a two-match ban for breaching “curfew rules” on a friendly assignment in Panama in May.

King has scored 12 goals from 21 appearances since making his debut for Jamaica in 2004.