Jamaica face Costa Rica in two friendly internationals

Head coach of Jamaica's girls Under-17 football team Xavier Gilbert is looking forward to gauging the team's readiness ahead of their Final Round CONCACAF Caribbean Qualifiers assignments, when they face Costa Rica in two friendly internationals.

The Jamaicans the 2015 Caribbean champions, will be looking for strong performances against the two-time FIFA Under-17 Women's World Cup qualifiers and will be hoping for a confidence booster ahead of the regional competition.

Jamaica is scheduled to play against Bermuda and Trinidad and Tobago in the group stage of the Caribbean qualifiers, which runs from October 16-22 in Haiti.

They will first face Costa Rica on September 29 at the UWI/JFF/Captain Horace Burrell Centre of Excellence, then two days later at St George's College. Both games will start at 3 p.m.

"We are looking forward to the two games against Costa Rica. It comes at a very good time. The time could not have been better. Fortunately, two weeks before we head into the final round of CFU qualifiers. We got a good opposition like Costa Rica for the games," head coach of Jamaica Under-17 women's team Xavier Gilbert told The Gleaner ahead of the Costa Rica friendlies.

"Our preparation has been going good so far, we played against an organised G.C. Foster College women's team and beat them 4-1 last Saturday. It was a good showing from the young ladies. I was a little bit disappointed with the pace at which the game was played," he assessed.

"We anticipate that Costa Rica will play a little faster, so it is for us to adjust in those games," Gilbert pointed out.

"It would be good if we get good results against Costa Rica as winning is a habit. It would give us a great deal of confidence heading into the final round tournament and could also drive support for the women's programme," he said.

"However, we want to also see how prepared we are for the tournament next month. It will be a good test for us to see what we need to correct," Gilbert also pointed out.

The coach also commended the Jamaica Football Federation for securing the games against Costa Rica.

"The JFF must be commended as it goes to show how serious they are and the support behind the women's football. In terms of getting a formidable opponent like Costa Rica, a country that went to the World Cup two times it must be commendable. I want to thank them for the support," Gilbert concluded.