Golden Jags announce squad for Gold Cup preliminary match against Spice Boys

A 23-man squad has been announced for the Guyana senior men’s national football team – the Golden Jaguars’ — CONCACAF Gold Cup preliminary game against Grenada.
Comprising 8 home-grown talents and 15 foreign-based players, the team will come up against the ‘Spice Boys’ on Saturday, June 17, at the DRV PNK Stadium in Miami. They play for a chance to enter the Gold Cup’s group stage.
The team, reportedly selected by Head Coach Jamaal Shabazz “after three weeks of intense training in both Jamaica and Miami, in the United States”, reads as follows: Defenders – Samuel Cox, Jeremy Garrett, Liam Gordon, Jonathan Grant, Jalen Jones, Curtez Kellman and Marcus Simmons; Forwards – Kelsey Benjamin, Trayon Bobb, Omari Glasgow, Callum Harriott, Tre Mitford, Deon Moore and Emery Welshman; Midfielders – Elliot Bonds, Kadel Daniel, Neil Danns, Stephen Duke-McKenna, Leo Lovell and Daniel Wilson; and goalkeepers – Akel Clarke, Kai McKenzie-Lyle and Renell McKenzie-Lyle.

Meanwhile, Assistant Coach Wayne Dover, in a comment invited by this publication, shared his thoughts on the composition of the squad and the morale in the Guyanese camp.
“The squad is a very good squad that was composed to contest this game on Saturday, and as we started our preparation, we see some steady progress as we continue to build towards the game,” Dover related.
The Assistant Coach further stated, “Well, the morale is still high, because I think the guys understand what the programme is all about. From the start, where we were and where we’re at now, I think in the games we competed well, we showed a good level of organization, more so defensively.
“We basically had a few off chances that, you know, if we converted, we could’ve come away with a much better result. You know, we played for a result and didn’t get a result, so we going back to the drawing board and look at the areas that we think that need to work on to give us a good chance against Grenada.”
Dover also touched on some of the areas the Golden Jaguars are looking to address before game day on Saturday. On that topic, Dover expressed, “Well, most of the physical component of the building of the team has been exhausted. This is about more managing the physical aspect going into this final week; but we will focus heavily on the tactical side of our game, more defensively to ensure that we stay compact when is needed.
“But importantly, we have to focus on the offensive pattern, because we have to score goals to win games too. So, that would be a combination of the two sets of tactical drills that would be conducted this week,” the Golden Jags Assistant Coach added.
The all-important clash between Guyana and Grenada is set for 9pm on Saturday, and should Guyana get past their opponents, the team would move on to play the winner of then Antigua vs Guadeloupe encounter in order to make it to the Gold Cup group stage.
Meanwhile, Grenada’s team for the preliminaries reads: Goalkeepers: Chad Phillip, Reice Charles-Cook, Jason Belfon.
Defenders: Trevon Williams, Roman Charles-Cook, Sawan Mark, Kimron Marshall, Mackell Ganness and Aaron Pierre.
Midfielders: Kwazim Theodore, Antigua Kayden Harrack, Jacob Agyepong, Regan Charles-Cook, Ashley Charles and Shavon John Brown.
Forwards: Romar Frank, Saydrel Lewis, Joshua Isaac, Jamal Charles, Kriston Julien, Kairo Mitchell, Myles Hippolyte and Lucas Akins.