Lady Jags, Dominica optimistic ahead of today’s Women’s Qualifier

Commencing at 8pm this evening, Guyana’s senior women’s national football team the Lady Jags will open their CONCACAF Women’s Qualifier campaign against their Dominican counterparts, for a shot at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

However, facing the pandemic and juggling personal life has been a struggle for both the ladies of Guyana and Dominica, who are slated to do battle tomorrow evening in their opening match of the CONCACAF Women’s Qualifiers.
During a pre-match press conference, the Head Coaches of Guyana and Dominica, Dr. Ivan Joseph and Albert Titre respectively, spoke about the impact of the ongoing pandemic on their teams, and what they expect from the ladies on Wednesday night.
“I think the pandemic has affected us all, whether it’s individually or organizationally, and like many of the Federations, we’ve had to deal with changing, lockdowns and restrictions that have impacted our ability to gather, to train, and to put in exhibition schedules,” Guyana’s Head Coach Dr. Ivan Joseph has said.
Coach Joseph informed, “And so we’ve used the last few days as what we’ll call a mini camp. An opportunity to assess and bring in players, identify talent, and then select a team,”
“It has also been a rocky road for us in Dominica. We are facing the COVID pandemic, and it’s really challenging for our players in Dominica. We also have our restrictions, Government restrictions. So, thanks to the Dominican Football Association for contacting the Government, so we could get the national team into training,” Titre shared.
Zeroing in on Guyana’s preparation, Dr. Joseph lamented the struggle it has been to achieve ‘chemistry’ with players scattered. Nonetheless, he highlighted that the team is stacked with ‘good leaders’.
“Whether it’s foreign-based, whether its seniors and rookies, always coming together and chemistry is a primary concern of mine. You’re only as effective as the leaders that are on your team. So, we’ve got some good leaders and they’re doing their part to make everybody feel included,” Dr. Joseph stated.
After locking horns with Dominica, the Lady Jags will travel to Turks and Caicos Islands for their second group game on Saturday, February 19. The second leg of the group stage will take place later this year.