Junior Lady Jags end U17 Qualifiers campaign with 7-1 victory

Guyana’s Junior Lady Jags closed off their campaign in the CONCACAF U17 Qualifiers on Friday evening with an emphatic win against Turks and Caicos Islands.

After suffering narrow defeats in their first two games of the competition, the Junior Lady Jags rebounded with a 7-1 victory over the Turks and Caicos Islands in a match played at the Estadio Olímpico Felix Sanchez in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The Junior Lady Jags starting XI read: captain Naomi Benjamin, goal keeper Sarah Ernest, Ella Yhip, Ayah Stewart, Elli Biffin. Alexaudria Chasles, Anaya Joseph, Devi Sookdeo, Aliyah John Avril Pasvolsky and Sydney Glean.
Alexaudria Chasles got the ball rolling for Guyana with a header that escaped the grasp of the Turks and Caicos’ goal-keeper and made its way into the nets for the first goal, in the 16th minute.
That was followed by a 20th minute strike off the boots of Devi Sookdeo, who got close to the end line and expertly slipped the ball between the goal post and keeper.

Then Turks and Caicos’ Brianyelis Meises made it a 3-0 affair in Guyana’s favour with an own goal scored in the 22nd, after her goal keeper saved a shot from Sydney Glean.
Anaya Joseph then netted a brace in the 24th and 41st to ensure Guyana have a 5-0 lead by half time. The second of her brace was as magnificent as they come: shooting from almost at the half-way mark, she found the back of the net.
Sookdeo chipped one over the keeper in the 54th to complete her brace and start the second half on a bright note for Guyana. Then Naomi Benjamin found the back of the net for Guyana as she shot from way outside of the 18-yard box in the 57th minute to complete the seven.
The Junior Lady Jags’ clean sheet was then spoiled by a precise free-kick in the 71st off the boots of Amika Jackson, whose shot sailed over the head of Guyana’s keeper Ernest into the right corner of the net.
In spite of the win, Guyana’s chances of making it to the Women’s U17 World Cup are shattered, given that only the group winners and best two second placed teams would advance to the next round of the qualifiers.
Guyana finished 3rd in Group C, which was won by Panama with a perfect 9 points from 3 games, followed by Cuba with 6 points. Turks and Caicos failed to secure any point in the group, having suffering 3 losses.