Daraine Luton, Freelance Writer

THE JAMAICA Volleyball Association (JAVA) is pulling out all the stops to ensure Jamaica's historic qualification for Japan next year.

When the national team journeys to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic between August 22-29 for the second-round qualifiers, it will have the benefit of two experienced players who have been called up by JAVA to strengthen the country's chances.

The players, Simone Forbes and Georgette Crawford-Crooks, who are no strangers to the national side, along with former junior player Kai Wright, have been brought into the side at the expense of Romaine McNeil, Shedeiky Hamilton and Ptamony Fletcher.

Crawford-Crooks donned the national colours in the 1990s. She is currently a recruiting co-ordinator at North Carolina State University where she also serves as assistant coach.

Meanwhile, Forbes is no stranger to the national colours having represented Jamaica at four other sports - football, netball, softball and basketball. Known to many Jamaicans as a devastating attacker whenever she plays for either the Sunshine Girls or her local club Waulgrovians, Forbes is a student at Mercy College in New York. She got there by way of a volleyball scholarship.

Technical director Phillip Greenland said that the experience of having Crawford-Crooks and Forbes at the qualifiers should serve Jamaica well.

POWERFUL HITTER

"Georgette has a lot of experience. She was a very powerful hitter when she played for Jamaica. She plays club volleyball in the States now and is still in fine shape. She still has that power and thus we expect her to add to our attack significantly," Greenland said.

"Forbes is a very talented young setter and based on how she looked during the Caribbean Championships last year and in training, she should serve us well. She is taller than the other setters and so she will be better able to get up there and block," he said.

Meanwhile, retaining their places in the Ortnel Findlay-coached 12-member team are: Tracyann Price, Paula Ann Porter Jones, Claudia Miller, Shanique Green, Cheryl Daley, Kamille Dwyer, Kai Wright, Cherine Richards, Avaniki Campbell and Kimberly Carraha.

The Jamaican team, which needs to place at least third in order to make it to its first volleyball World Championships, has been staging weekend training camps at G.C. Foster College since last week. This weekened, the team is scheduled to play a team from the Cayman Islands.