Golden Jaguars exuding confidence ahead of League A debut

It will be a momentous occasion for Guyana’s senior men’s national football team at the National Track and Field Center (NTFC), West Coast Demerara (WCD) this afternoon, as the team compete in League A of the CONCACAF Nations League for the first time in its long history.
The Golden Jaguars will take on Guyana’s eastern continental neighbour, Suriname in the all-important clash.
As the Golden Jaguars got their machines oiled at the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) National Training Centre, players Curtez Kellman and Osaze De Rosario both expressed confidence heading into the match.

Golden Jaguars defender Kellman shared, “I think this means a lot; coming in from the B [League] unbeaten, I think this has boosted our confidence. Yeah, everyone knows it’s League A, it’s the big teams in the CONCACAF region, but I think once we go into each game with the same mindset as we did in League B, I think we’re very much confident enough in getting results in these games.”
“Like you said, we earned it. We’re coming up to the big boys and we’re playing at their level, with our own style. We’re willing it to be here and we’re ready,” Forward De Rosario added.
The duo later shared their perspectives with Guyana Times Sport, on how the national team can come away with a positive result today.
“I think, obviously, our expectation like everyone else around the camp is to win. But what we have to do, as the Coach mentioned, is to work hard, collectively as a team. It’s that bond with each other and I think that, like I mentioned earlier with the preparation, I think everyone is very tuned-in and understands the information related to us by the Coach and I think once we execute that well in the game, we will get the positive results that we need,” Kellman explained.
Meanwhile, De Rosario shared, “Well, from the first whistle, I know that we are an aggressive team, we go for it, we go for the first goal. We don’t wait for the teams to play, we go, we attack and we’re the ones that are gonna put the pressure on them,”
Head Coach Jamaal Shabazz was also confident that his troops would be up to the challenge.
“I think, it’s important for our team going into this game, is to play 90 minutes and to recognise at any given moment that the score in the game is not the result in the game, the result comes at the end. League A is a totally different level and it’s not just that we’re playing Suriname, we’re playing another League A team and we just came in,” Shabazz related to this publication.
The Head Coach went on to assure, “It’s important for us to bear that in mind, but the players are up for it though. The guys are very enthusiastic and I don’t think we’ll take anything for granted. We’re up for it.”
The encounter between Guyana and Suriname will kick off at 16:00h, with tickets for the match going at $2000. The Golden Jaguars’ next assignment will be against Martinique on Monday, September 9. (G6)