Former Reggae Girlz coach Vin Blaine was left disappointed after he was forced to cancel a talent identification exercise in Florida, for Jamaican diaspora players, slated for Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.Blaine, a former title-winning Jamaica Premier League (JPL) coach with Harbour View and once the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) director of football, has been residing in the United States for the past few years and started his own football academy, Game Changer Football Academy, organisers of the event.Blaine noted that his growing familiarity with Jamaican heritage players in the US system, inspired him to organise the games, in an effort to give national under-20 coach Rodolph Austin, who was scheduled to be in town, an opportunity to view the players and bolster his squad for the FIFA Youth World Cup qualifiers final round.However, after advertising the game as a 'Jamaica National Team Identification' event, and stating that players would be evaluated for potential inclusion in the Jamaica national team player pool, the JFF quickly distanced itself from the initiative.A release from the federation said the JFF was not affiliated with, associated with, or involved in the organisation, promotion, or execution of this camp.It added that the federation highly valued players from the diaspora and recognised their importance in the continued growth and development of the national programme. "Talent identification remains a critical component of our player- development strategy, and the JFF remains committed to providing opportunities for eligible players both locally and overseas," the release said. However, it said official talent identification camps or scouting initiatives conducted by the federation are communicated exclusively through official channels, such as its website and verified social media platforms."We encourage members of the public to verify the authenticity of any programme or event claiming an association with the JFF before registering or participating," it added.JFF General Secretary Gregory Daley said they could not associate themselves with an event they had no knowledge of or input in, as they run the risk of liability.He noted also that the JFF got word that parents were being asked to 'contribute towards the staging of the event."This was supposed to be a scouting exercise, but it cannot be done if it is not organised through the JFF. Anything can happen that can be a liability to us. We knew nothing about the planning. "I do not know how true it is, but immediately after we saw the advert on social media, we heard parents were being asked to contribute."So we could not associate ourselves with it. I told them to distance ourselves from it because we knew nothing about it."Blaine insisted the initiative would be at absolutely no cost to the federation or parents and that it was not a commercial venture nor did it generate any personal financial benefit."It was not a commercial venture for me. Everything was free for the players. The letter to the players' parents consists of time, place, and what they should do when they come."He described the JFF's response as “disappointing and unnecessary” and although he admitted that in hindsight the actual wording of the advert could have suggested the JFF's involvement, he believed the situation was easily rectifiable with a phone call."If that created confusion, I accept responsibility for that unintended implication. However, that clarification hardly justifies the federation issuing a public press release implying impropriety, instead of simply contacting me directly. A single telephone call or email could have resolved any misunderstanding within minutes. "The JFF might be right, but I never used the JFF's name for anything, and this was in the interest of the programme, but if you see something sent out by Vin Blaine and you have a concern, just call me," he insisted.However, Daley insists the ball was in Blaine's court. "Why couldn't he call and tell us he was doing this? A phone call could not have rectified everything at the back end. We only knew about it a couple of days after the under-20s left."We couldn't give an account. I don't think anybody from the JFF could have answered even one question as it relates to that event."So it's about how this thing came up. We can't say that we are with it and then when we have a liability, we say we are not. We couldn't go ahead and run with it like that without proper information," Daley said.However, Blaine contends that the federation could not be held accountable for any mishaps. "It (advertisement) never said in association with the JFF," he said while adding that. He had full respect for the governing body of the sport.