A fierce matchup is on the cards tonight as Guyana’s senior women’s national football team, the Lady Jags, head into the second leg of their CONCACAF Women’s Qualifiers campaign with what is expected to be an invigorating encounter with Nicaragua’s women.
Chante Sandiford in action during a Lady Jags training session
With both teams focused on taking the three points in a bid to get closer to qualifying for the CONCACAF Women’s Championships, a must-watch game has been promised.
The Lady Jags have had a successful start to their CONCACAF Women’s Qualifiers campaign with wins against Dominica and Turks and Caicos back in February. Now they will face an even more difficult test as they take on Nicaragua and Trinidad and Tobago today and next Tuesday night respectively.
Lady Jags Head Coach Dr. Ivan Joseph
In a virtual pre-match press conference on Thursday morning, Nicaraguan Women’s Coach, Elna Dixon, considered Guyana’s home advantage, but vowed to put up a challenge.
“We know that Guyana is the favourite here, cause we are in the home country, but Nicaragua has a chance to do good, and in the game we will do our part,” Dixon said with the help of a translator.
Lady Jags Head Coach Dr. Ivan Joseph, while acknowledging Dixon’s home advantage comment, viewed his team as the underdogs, considering Nicaragua’s recent 19-0 performance against Turks and Caicos.
“I would be lying if I said we weren’t very nervous. I would thank the player and the coach for saying how we’re favoured, but I would consider us the underdogs. While Nicaragua hasn’t played a lot, you will see the results have shown that they’re more than capable and competent,” Dr. Joseph related.
Nicaragua Head Coach Elna Dixon
He went on to explain, “When I look at it, these next three games between us, Trinidad and Nicaragua, the table is still wide open. Any of these teams can qualify. The 19 goals that Nicaragua scored against Turks and Caicos says they have a high, powerful offence that is to be respected and is to be feared.”
Giving some insight on the areas the Lady Jags have been working to perfect, Goalkeeper Chante Sandiford highlighted that they will be ready as ever tomorrow evening.
The Lady Jags goalkeeper and occasional captain shared, “We have been working with fitness Coach David Lawrence since we’ve been away from each other, doing some remote fitness work and checking in with each other. Our fitness looks a lot better that it was last time we were competing together. So, we’re very happy with the progress we’ve made in terms of fitness there, and I feel like we should have no problem being strong throughout the entire match.
“In terms of being more clinical in finishing, we have been working with our Coach, KC. We’ve been working very hard with him for the past four days here in camp, and we are definitely more confident now in our finishing, going forward,” she further revealed.
While both teams have backed themselves to do well tonight, one thing both teams could agree on is the need for crowd support at the Leonora Track and Field Facility tonight.
“Tomorrow we’re expecting it to be a beautiful game, representing CONCACAF in the Women’s tournament. We want the people to come out and enjoy it, cause we’re going to have a good time and show them what we’ve got,” Nicaragua’s player representative shared.
On the other hand, Sandiford expressed, “We’re really excited for the game tomorrow. You can expect to see a battle out there on the field between two technical sides, both who really want a result. So, I’m excited for people to come and see how far women’s football has come in Guyana, as well as Nicaragua, and to just enjoy the match.
“And hopefully, we get the result that we want,” the Guyanese player added.
Guyana and Nicaragua will go head-to-head at the Leonora Track and Field Facility this evening, beginning at 8pm. Meanwhile the Lady Jags are also expected to take on Trinidad and Tobago next Tuesday at 6pm. Of the five- team Group (F), the Group leader will be the only one advancing to the CONCACAF Women’s Championships in Monterrey, Mexico from July 4-18, 2022. The Women’s Championships will act as a qualification tournament for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand, and the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France. (Jemima Holmes)
