Lady Jags, Guyana’s national senior women’s team, held their own and had a 2-2 draw in their second match against Suriname as competition in Group E of the CFU Women’s Challenge Series heats up at the Ato Boldon Stadium in Trinidad and Tobago.
The spirited match, held in front of a small but supportive crowd and captained by Alison Heydorn, saw the Guyanese team creating multiple scoring opportunities, even amidst injuries sustained by some players.
Three of the Debutantes_L-R – Aneesa O’ Brien (GK),Lakeisha Pearson (13) and Rylee Traicoff (22)
Jags had an early start in the match when one of the team’s debutantes, midfielder Tiandi Smith, scored in the 21st minute. However, Suriname made a comeback on the brink of half time with a goal in the 45th minute.
During the second held, Brittany Persaud gave Guyana the lead in the 56th minute, but Suriname quickly capitalized on their chance to score and equalized with a goal in the 65th minute.
In an invited comment following the match, Head Coach of the “Lady Jags”, Dr. Ivan Joseph, said the team was able to experiment with some players to aid evaluation.
“We started a couple of different players in a few positions, and we were able to evaluate and assess and learn more about them. I thought Tiandi did a nice job; she was involved in the first goal, and put up a couple of opportunities. Lakeshia Pearson continues to be a dangerous threat down the wing, and Siacy (Horicia) Adams came in the last fifteen minutes of the game and really held her own, and I thought she was a bright spot,” Dr Joseph said.
In summarizing the match, Dr. Joseph said focusing on the process not the outcome is important.
“Several players have displayed their ability to play at this level. We’ve been able to blend and gel as a unit; and finally, and most importantly, we are able to see the level of competition and develop a game plan that will enable us to ensure our success during our qualifiers in May. I’m pleased at where we are at this stage of our training camp,” he declared.
As Guyana prepares for its final match of the tournament — against Trinidad and Tobago on Sunday (today) — Dr. Joseph says a different match approach will be taken with the “Soca Princesses” to that employed with Grenada and Suriname. However, the focus remains the same: assessing players towards building a stronger unit.
