“We’re exactly where we need to be. In fact, we might be ahead of the curve, as I didn’t realize how young the players were; the future is very bright for Guyana’s football,” said Dr. Ivan Joseph, Head Coach of the national senior women’s football team.
Lakeisha Pearson tries to navigate the field against Suriname
Guyana has 12 debutantes in the squad participating in the CFU Women’s Challenge Series in Trinidad and Tobago. These are: Aneesa O’ Brien, Natalie Nedd, Sasha James, Rylee Traicoff, Jessica Myers, Jade Vyfhuis, Nailah Rowe, Siacy Adams, Shontel Greene, Tiandi Smith, Jimmaica Hunte and Annalisa Vincent.
Some of these debutantes, including Tiandi Smith, Siacy Adams and Lakeisha Pearson, have to date displayed their talent, and Dr. Joseph has been impressed with the showing.
“Lakeisha Pearson did a really nice job,” he said. “She’s shifty on the ball, she’s pretty silky, had two great opportunities, she hit a crossbar from up-close, created several goal-scoring opportunities; that’s somebody we’ll keep a really close eye on,” Dr. Joseph disclosed after the first game against Grenada.
“Annalisa also did a really nice job, and got some starts. Young keeper, 15 years old, did an exceptional job. Tiandi came off the bench and did a pretty good job,” he further stated.
Dr. Joseph said the team is evolving, and the focus during this tournament is on building team cohesion as well as providing playing opportunities, to enable the staff to evaluate the players.
“Several players have displayed their ability to play at this level. We’ve been able to blend and gel as a unit; and finally and most importantly, we are able to see the level of competition, and develop a game plan that will enable us to ensure our success during our qualifiers in May. I’m pleased at where we are at this stage of our training camp,” he concluded.
GFF Technical Director Ian Greenwood also echoed the sentiments of the Head Coach of the national senior women’s team, and said the international exposure gained by the players will contribute to a stronger national programme.
“The future is extremely bright for the GFF women’s programme with the number of young debutantes that have gained valuable international experience and exposure in this CFU competition,” he has declared.
