Junior Lady Jags confident ahead of CFU U14 Challenge series
Guyana’s National Under-14 Girls’ team will hunt success, beginning tomorrow, in the Caribbean Football Union’s (CFU) U14 Girls’ Challenge series.
The event will run from Friday, August 15, to Monday, August 25, in Trinidad and Tobago, with Guyana’s 20-member team touching down in the twin-island republic on Thursday.
Guyana’s U14 girls were encamped at the GFF Training Centre prior to their departure for Trinidad (Jemima Holmes Photo)
The tournament will be contested in two tiers – eight teams in Tier I and 15 teams in Tier II – bringing together nearly 500 young female footballers for ten days of competitive action and cultural exchange.
Guyana will compete in Group C of Tier II, alongside Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos.
Matches will be played at the Ato Boldon Stadium, Hasely Crawford Stadium, and Larry Gomes Stadium.
Meanwhile, prior to their departure, the Guyana Times Sport caught up with the team whose staff and players are both oozing confidence.
Coach Nichola Argyle told this publication about the team’s preparation, which was carried out at the Guyana Football Federation’s (GFF) National Training Centre. “We had weeks of preparation with the girls from different parts of Guyana; we had like 45 females in the camp, so the camp had to break down. We were working constantly, daily training, like double sessions, so we’ve been working on all the different areas, defence and attack. We were working with our goalkeepers, and I’m confident that the girls can do it. They’re working hard, so I think that we have a great bunch of young ladies.”
On the other hand, forward Sabana Simon, though admitting there are areas the team can polish up on, is quite confident in the junior Lady Jags’ chances.
“My team just needs to work on more communication and proper passes. I’m not saying that they can’t pass, but they’re my teammates, and I have confidence that we can do much better in that area,” Simon expressed.
The forward added, “I’m 100 per cent confident in my team. I think that we have a really good team to win this competition that we’re going into Trinidad to play.”
Guyana will take on Antigua & Barbuda in their first match on Saturday, August 16. Thereafter, the junior Lady Jags battle Turks & Caicos on August 17, Anguilla on August 18 and the Cayman Islands on August 19.
The tournament will be contested in two tiers – eight teams in Tier I and 15 teams in Tier II – bringing together nearly 500 young female footballers for ten days of competitive action and cultural exchange.
