‘The team delivered’ – Shabazz

Following their official receipt of the Elite League Championship Trophy on Saturday last, Head Coach Jamaal Shabazz has expressed pride in his team’s exploits this season.

The Slingerz gaffer, in the midst of his team’s celebrations, described the final game against he Guyana Defence Force (GDF) FC, as one for the fans.
“Tonight’s game was all about the fans. GDF were on fire, it was a vey difficult game for us to try to contain them, the created a good couple chances and more importantly, both teams created a lot of excitement, especially for the fans who supported the league throughout the season. It was a good, good game for them,” Shabazz told media operatives following the tournament’s conclusion.
Quizzed on how difficult it might have been to motivate players even after securing the League early, the Slingerz gaffer appreciated the pride his players displayed in wanting to maintain their unbeaten run.
He expressed, “It’s always difficult when we have accomplished something like winning the league and getting the guys’ heads in the right place. They felt that they needed to stay unbeaten and credit to them, they came out and worked very hard for it.”
“Up to two days before the game, we had full turn- out in the training and while at first, you gonna constantly keep talking to them; tonight they showed that look, although they knew we won the league, they showed that pride and that guts and that determination to try to finish unbeaten and we achieved that objective.”
On a personal note, Shabazz labelled his work with the team this season as a huge investment that paid off.
The former Golden jaguars Head Coach explained, “Being a club coach, it’s about 23 years since I’ve been a club coach. I look forward to a good rest. I felt that the team delivered, it was a huge investment made by the Javed Ali family in bringing me into Slingerz.
It was a really, really good experience, you know, working day- to- day, very different from working in the National team when you only have the players 4 days before. So, all in all, I still have that fire in my stomach and I look forward to the future,” he went on to share.
Aside from the championship trophy, Slingerz FC also carted off the best goalkeeper and Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards that went to Akel Clarke and Darron Niles respectively. Striker Kemar Beckford also finished second in the highest goal- scorer race with 30 goals in 18 games.