Boyz loosen up ahead of Peru showdown
AREQUIPA, Peru — Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz, who were unable to get a training session on Monday, took to the field this morning at the TPD facility to loosen their legs and fine-tune some tactical areas.
The Boyz are in Peru for their friendly international game against the hosts at the Estadio de La Unsa this evening at 7:30, the same time as Jamaica.
At the mid-morning session, physical trainer Lamar Morgan guided the players through a series of low-intensity exercise drills before turning over to Head Coach Theodore ‘Tappa’ Whitmore, who conducted the technical aspect.
The Jamaicans, who left Jamaica on Sunday morning and arrived in the Peruvian capital, Lima late that night after an eight-hour layover in Miami and five-hour flight, were forced to check into a hotel.
They then flew out of Lima late Monday and arrived at their final destination a weary bunch, prompting the coach to cancel a light workout in favour of giving the players rest.
Goalkeeper Ryan Thompson said the key to a good Jamaican performance hinges on how the players cope with the changing gears that are expected for the 25th-ranked Peru playing in front of the home support.
“What is important is how we will deal with the changing weather during the game… When we played against Chile last year there were moments in the game when Chile were on top of us, then we capitalised on the opportunities we got, so we are likely to face similar situations against Peru, but we will have to just take the opportunities as the come and move forward and see what happens in the game,” he told OBSERVER Online.
In a 4-4-2 formation, Andre Blake will start in goal for Jamaica, while Jermaine Taylor and Ladale Richie will play in the centre of defence. The USA-based pair of Kemar Lawrence (left) and Alvas Powell will occupy the flanking defensive positions. Spread across the midfield are: Michael Binns, Ewan Grandison, Je-Vaughn Watson and Oneil Fisher.
Corey Burke and Shemar Nicholson will start up front.
Jamaica are using the game as preparation for the upcoming Caribbean Cup (June 22-25) and the CONCACAF Gold Cup (July 7-26).
Sean Williams