Girlz took that on the chin – Price

Jamaica’s senior women’s football team assistant coach Andrew Price says the Reggae Girlz have taken the defeat to Canada on the chin, and the unit has learnt a lot from the humiliating encounter.

The Reggae Girlz went down 9-0 in Group B of the Concacaf Women’s Olympic Qualifiers in Edinburg, Texas, on Saturday night, and Price says the team has already begun to pick up the pieces and move on.

“We didn’t show up at all, and the performance was well below the level of expectations,” he said. “We showed the Canadians too much respect, and we allowed them to take over the game.”

The domination was evident in the statistics, with the Canadians taking 25 shots, compared to Jamaica’s six.

Of the 25 shots, 10 were on target compared to just two for Jamaica, and for Price, the result is a wake-up call for women’s football in the region.

“They say sorrows teach a lesson well, and we came up against a well-oiled Canadian machine, who are ranked eighth in the world for a reason,” Price said. “That Canada team has been playing together for the past eight years, and the way how they play with cohesion as a unit says a lot about their preparations.”

Price said that the Reggae Girlz needed to have been a lot more aggressive in their play, similar to how they played against Mexico, and the defensive unit would need to correct their mistakes as they head into their final group game against St Kitts and Nevis tomorrow.

“We are going to lift our heads and try to finish this tournament on a positive note,” Price said. “The girls have put the Canada game behind them and have promised to do better.”

Canada and Mexico have qualified for the semi-finals.