Boyz secure pre-Gold Cup series
Jamaica will face Qatar and Jordan on June 15 and June 19
Published:Saturday | May 13, 2023 | 12:41 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
With a view to give the national senior men’s team the best possible chance of success at this summer’s Gold Cup, the Reggae Boyz will make their return to Austria for a two-game international series to fine-tune their preparations.
The Jamaica Football Federation, in a statement yesterday, confirmed that Jamaica will play against Qatar and Jordan on June 15 and June 19, respectively, as part of their pre-tournament camp. The games, which are outside of the FIFA International Window, will be the final opportunity for head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson to evaluate his team before making his Concacaf tournament debut.
JFF general secretary Dennis Chung had alluded to the camp on Thursday but did not confirm the opponents or the location of the camp. In a statement, JFF president Michael Ricketts said that the two-week camp will ensure that the team will have the necessary tools for what he hopes will be a historic campaign.
“We want to place coach Hallgrimsson and his team in the best position to perform at their optimum at the Gold Cup,” Ricketts said. “This is the third year consecutively that we will be hosted in this city, a location that is perfect for preparation. I believe that with the quality of the team we now have, combined with the quality of coaching, we have an outstanding opportunity to create history by winning the coveted trophy.”
The team is expected to arrive in Austria for the game on June 11 before leaving for Chicago on June 20, four days before their Gold Cup group opener against the United States.
Qatar will be one of the teams that will be competing in the Gold Cup as a guest country for the second consecutive year. They advanced to the semifinals of the tournament in their debut last year.
In their only meeting, Jamaica drew with Qatar 1-1 during last year’s four-nation tournament in August, while this will be the first meeting between Jamaica and Jordan. The Reggae Boyz have made the Gold Cup finals twice in 2015 and 2017 and made it to the quarterfinals last year, losing to eventual champions the United States. Hallgrimsson is still searching for his first win since taking the job as head coach last September. Jamaica’s last game was in March, drawing 2-2 with Mexico in their Concacaf Nations League group finale.