Reggae Boy Anderson satisfied with home debut

ONE of Jamaica’s exciting young footballers, Karoy Anderson, made his home debut during Thursday’s 2026 World Cup qualifying match against the Dominican Republic and the 19-year-old says he was happy with the support fans gave to the national team.

“It was a great experience, especially to come on as a substitute in the second half. The crowd was really excited so it was enjoyable and the fact that we won was good, so it’s now on to the next game to get another win,” he stated.

The Reggae Boyz were 1-0 winners courtesy of a 16th-minute strike from Shamar Nicholson. Anderson revealed that the instructions from the coaching staff were simple and he heaped praise on teammate Renaldo Cephas who troubled the Dominican Republic defenders throughout the encounter.

“When I came on we were already 1-0 up and I was told to just maintain the tempo, ensure that we kept on playing forward and don’t give them an opportunity to try and get back into the game. I think we made the right decisions and Cephas on the left hand side was beating their defender a lot.”

Anderson, who plies his trade for English League One outfit Charlton Athletic, explained that he has full confidence in himself as a ball handler for the national team. He suggested those instincts were instilled in him from a younger age and has credited the players around him for helping him to grow more as a professional.

“I think I learnt a lot of this when I was younger. I played deep positions and as I got older I played higher, so I just take certain aspects of each position and put it all together. With the players around me, I can learn from them as well,” the Charlton academy graduate added.

The match also saw the Reggae Boyz for the first time play in their new adidas kit and Anderson is a big fan of the new jersey.

“Yes, it’s nice. I can see that they took some real time in making it. My favourite colour is green and the jersey has a lot (of green) in it,” Anderson shared.

orane.buchanan@gleanerjm.com