Suriname: Tragedy and Future Promise
By Tom Dunmore • Jul 25th, 2008 • Category: Features • 8 responsesThis could very easily be the lead intro to this story:
On June 7, 1989 Suriname Airways Flight PY764 took off from Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands en route to Paramaribo-Zanderij International Airport in Suriname. The Suriname Airways D-8 plane crashed on approach to the airport, after the plane’s crew ignored warnings and used an inappropriate navigation signal. 176 of the 187 onboard were killed, including the international footballers Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, Aron Winter, Bryan Roy, Stanley Menzo and Regi Blinker, who were travelling to Surinam to play for the Colourful 11’s charity team.
That the footballers actually killed on the flight were not those superstars, but rather a lesser group recruited for the Colourful 11 after the likes of Gullit and Rijkaard were refused permission to travel by their European clubs, makes it no less of a tragedy but a more obscure story.
The footballers who in fact died were:
- Ruud Degenaar, 25, Heracles Almelo
- Lloyd Doesburg, 29, AFC Ajax
- Steve van Dorpel ,23, FC Volendam
- Wendel Fräser, 22, RBC Roosendaal
- Frits Goodings, 25, FC Wageningen
- Jerry Haatrecht, 25, Neerlandia
- Virgall Joemankhan,20 , Cercle Brugge
- Andro Knel, 21, NAC Breda
- Ruben Kogeldans, 22, Willem II Tilburg
- Ortwin Linger, 21, HFC Haarlem
- Fred Patrick, 23, PEC Zwolle
- Andy Scharmin, 21, FC Twente
- Elfried Veldman, 23, De Graafschap
- Florian Vijent, 27, Telstar
- Nick Stienstra, 33, RC Heemstede (coach)
The story also illuminates the odd relationship between Surinam and the dozens of players it has produced who have gone on to play in the Dutch league, but who rarely return to play in Surinam or for their national team.
Surinam, in the north east of South America bordering Brazil and on the Atlantic coast, is the smallest country in South America (though it plays its football in CONCACAF) with a population of 500,000.
Despite its small size, Suriname has produced a strong stream of footballing talent, almost all of the best of which has gone on to represent the Netherlands, its former colonial master (it gained its independence in 1975). As well as those mentioned above, Patrick Kluivert, Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Stanley Menzo, and Ryan Babel are all of Surinamese descent. Many — such as Gullit and Rijkaard — were born in the Netherlands, though others, such as Seedorf and Hasselbaink, were born in Suriname.
Yet this talent is not something Suriname has ever been able to call on for its national team, which has never even come close to qualifying for the World Cup. This is because of a curious rule in Suriname: players who leave to play professional football abroad (numbering around 150 currently) cannot return and play for the national team (the government is apparently currently reconsidering this ruling).
Despite this, Suriname are currently surging up the Fifa rankings; they were the biggest movers last month, leaping up 58 places to 87th in the world to reach their highest ever ranking (above the likes of Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago). They beat Montserrat 7-1 and Guyana 3-1 over two legs to surprisingly reach the group phase of CONCACAF qualifying for the World Cup, and have been drawn in a favourable group comprising of Haiti, El Salvador and Costa Rica.
It would be quite a story if they could somehow make it to South Africa,despite only being able to call on local amaterurs, and twenty years on from the tragedy of flight PY764.
Thanks to Jamzinho on the WSC forum for bringing up this story.
Tom Dunmore is the editor of Pitch Invasion.
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[...] Suriname: Tragedy and future promise (Pitch Invasion) [...]
Interesting article, as usual, Tom. I wonder how Suriname would fare in international competitions if they could field a true best of the best squad that wasn’t picked over by the Dutch.
But I am curious as to why Suriname qualifies as a CONCACAF nation. Do you have the answer Sir Tom?
Jeez if S. ever fixed their kamikaze foreign player rule FIFA would have a canary since the USA would no longer have a cake walk to every WCF.
FIFA could care less in the USA made the World Cup or not. But if it’s a cake walk for the United States then Mexico and Costa Rica have it easy as well.
Suriname has produced a lot of great footballers.
I think that if at least some of them had played for Suriname, they would surely have clasified for a World Cup.
The accident story is very sad, like the one from Zambia and the tragedy of its national team around the middle of the 90’s
Personally, I think that if Suriname goverment considered this curious rule, their national team would improve and they can be closer to Trinidad and Tobago, since the Soca Warrios managed to play a World Cup with little natural talent
[...] Surinam: Tragedy and Future PromiseOn June 7, 1989 Suriname Airways Flight PY764 took off from Amsterdam-Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands en route to Paramaribo-Zanderij International Airport in Suriname. The Suriname Airways D-8 plane crashed on approach to the … [...]
The thing is, Surinam has not ‘produced a strong stream of footballing talent’. Players like Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, Aron Winter, Bryan Roy, Stanley Menzo and Regi Blinker were produced by Dutch coaches and managers using facilities and equipment provided by Dutch football clubs.They were only born in, or have family who were born in, Surinam.
If they stayed in Surinam they would probably never have become the players they did. So you can understand why they decide to play for the Netherlands.
A terrible tragedy though.
They could get a boost if they got Dutch-born Surinamese players who couldn’t make it into the Orange to play for their national team,they could really use it to their advantage.But players tend to wait out their call-up to their national team of choice until theyre over 30.