Young Girlz look to complete sweep of Group Four
PARAMARIBO, Suriname — Having already secured a spot to the second phase of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) World Cup Qualifiers, Jamaica’s Under-17 Reggae Girlz will seek to end the first round with a bang.
The Girlz are safely atop Group Four on six points from two games, and should maintain a perfect win record against the hosts who are on three points at the Dr IR Franklin Essed Stadium today.
The game is scheduled to get underway at 6:00 pm (4:00 pm Jamaica time), after Barbados take on St Lucia at 3:30 pm (1:30 pm Jamaica time) in the earlier encounter of the double-header. The Barbadians are currently in third on three points with an inferior goal difference following a 2-1 win over Suriname on Friday, while St Lucia are yet to gain a point.
Following their easy 14-0 win over St Lucia, Head Coach Lorne Donaldson conducted a one-hour session yesterday, where the Girlz were taken through a light recovery session. They also worked on transitioning as well as basic shooting at goal.
“It was a win but not good football; the region has to get better. We were happy for the win, but I would love to see the region and everybody, including Jamaica, get better. We needed to score goals early and we did that, the team is getting a little bit smarter, but that game wasn’t a true test for anybody for me as a coach or the players,” said Donaldson.
He pointed out that they are not going to get complacent, despite the team having already guaranteed a spot in the next round.
“We are going in to win the game; that is why we are here. We just want to get through the group and then we can actually put some more stuff in place and advance the players a little bit more,” he told the Jamaica Observer.
The Jamaicans have been touted as virtual favourites to top the group, but Donaldson stressed that the lack of toughness being displayed by their opponents have not allowed them to stick to their tactical game.
“We have to get something that we can’t do by playing out of the back and transitioning. So my instruction to the girls will be to see if we really know how to get into position, get it to the ‘keeper play it back and play out and do something because we will need to do that when we meet competition that testS us that way,” he noted.
“So I would love to see them step up and put some pressure and force us into something so we really have to play through traffic with people defending us, in order for us to get to where we want to be going forward,” Donaldson added.
The Jamaicans are set to stick with their customary 4-3-3 formation, but will be forced to make a few changes to the midfield due to lingering injuries.
Oneilia Yearde will once again start in goal. Captain Rachel Walters, Lyana Steele, Peta-Gay Dixon and Shanhaine Nelson will hold the defensive line, while Lacey-Ann Murray will replace Tarania Clarke in the middle of the park, joining Emily Caza, and Sherice Clarke. Monique Perrier, Jody Brown and Rena Gordon will once again lead the attacking line.