Donaldson close to being named Girlz head coach
Published:Tuesday | May 31, 2022 | 2:18 PMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
The Gleaner has been reliably informed that Lorne Donaldson is on the verge of being named the next head coach of the Women's Senior National team.
A source familiar with the situation said the Jamaica Football Federation's (JFF) technical committee had made the recommendation that Donaldson be returned to the programme two years after he resigned, citing unprofessionalism from the JFF. It is expected that the recommendation is to be ratified by the JFF executive today.
Donaldson was a part of the coaching staff that led Jamaica to the 2019 Women's World Cup along with then-head coach Hue Menzies who resigned in late 2019, following irreconcilable differences.
The Gleaner understands that Englishman Jonathan Morgan was the leading candidate for the job but his appointment as Burnley Women's head coach led to a rethink of the position and the eventual recommendation.
When contacted by The Gleaner, Donaldson admitted that he had interviewed for the job but had not been officially contacted by the JFF since.
"I haven't really spoken to anybody about the job. I had a conversation with the technical committee and that was it. I haven't spoken with anybody recently in the last week about anything else," Donaldson told The Gleaner.
"I cannot comment on something that I don't officially know about."
If confirmed, Donaldson will be the Reggae Girlz' second head coach in the space of five months after the resignation of Vin Blaine on May 17.
Blaine resigned following a letter signed by 20 players citing a lack of communication and professionalism in their preparations for the first round of the Concacaf World Cup qualifiers. Jamaica won all four games en route to the final round.
Jamaica are drawn to face World Champion the United States, Mexico and Haiti in Group A of the Concacaf Women's Championship, which acts as the final round of qualifying for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand next year.
The top two teams will qualify automatically for the Women's World Cup while the third-place team will play in an intercontinental playoff.
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