Gilbert expects tough battle
Girlz play Panama away on October 25 and Guatemala at home on October 20
Published:Saturday | October 21, 2023 | 12:09 AMLivingston Scott/Gleaner Writer
Interim Reggae Girlz head coach Xavier Gilbert expects an uphill task when they face Panama away and Guatemala at home in the opening matches of the Women’s Gold Cup qualifiers, after a majority of the squad that took Jamaica to the FIFA Women’s World Cup round of 16 declined invitations for the matches.
The Gleaner has learnt that 19 players from Europe, United States and some local-based players have accepted late invitations for the October 25 match in Panama and against Guatemala on October 29 at the National Stadium. The return games for these two ties will be on November 29 (Panama at home) and December 3 (Guatemala away).
Only six of the players called up have played at the senior level before. They are goalkeeper Chriss-Ann Chambers; defenders Malikae Dayes, Alika Keene and Jayda Hylton-Pelaia and midfielders Chinyelu Asher and Marlo Sweatman. Asher and Sweatman were members of the Reggae Girlz squad at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France.
With only a few days to get the team organised, Gilbert is aware of the magnitude of the task and is trying to take things in stride.
“It is going to be tough but it is what it is. I can only control what I can control. There is not much we can do, we just have to try and get them organised.
“The good thing is that some of them (new players) have played together before. There are some with international experience, some have represented at the under-20 level and some played in the (World Cup) qualifiers but did not make the final squad.
“So they would have some experience playing at the under-20 level and some at the senior level before. It is an uphill task but we will see how best we can deal with it,” he said.
FAMILIAR WITH PLAYERS
Gilbert, who has coached at all the various youth levels and was senior team assistant coach at the 2023 World Cup, pointed out that one of the good things is that he has coached all the players at some time during their youth careers and will be familiar with the qualities they offer.
However, he might not have all the players at his disposal until two or three days ahead of the first match in Panama.
“The game is October 25, so we expect them to fly in on October 23. Some will come in on October 22. So we might have one full training session, maybe for an hour before the game,” he conceded.
Nevertheless, he is looking at getting the best result that will give them the best chance when the return leg is played in Jamaica.
“We are looking to see if we can get a decent result from the game. It is going to be tough against a team just coming from the World Cup. We played them (at the World Cup) with our first team players and we saw how difficult it was. So it is going to be difficult but it is what we have to work with and we are going to see how we can get the job done for Jamaica.”
He added that although he does not have the first team players available, he is hoping for their quick return.
“Certainly (disappointed not to have the players available). It is disappointing but that is what it is. But we hope to have them back and that Jamaica will be fielding its strongest team going forward.
Meanwhile, The Gleaner understands that unpaid World Cup money, which some players gave as one of the reasons for declining the invitation, was paid in full between Thursday and yesterday.
A highly placed JFF source pointed out that an expansion of players’ pool to include those involved in the qualifying stage was the reason for the delay. The players’ pool increased from 23 to 41 players after those involved in qualifiers were included.
The source pointed out that the first team members who were originally selected are in breach of contract as they have failed to answer their call to duty for reasons other than medical reasons. According to the source, their contracts state that they can only refuse to play because of medical reasons.
The players who rejected the invitation were suspended by the JFF yesterday.
livingston.scott@gleanerjm.com
Reggae Girlz squad: Chriss-Ann Chambers, Javanae Jones, Lauren Reid, Malikae Dayes, Zoe Vidaurre, Nevillegail Able, Chinyelu Asher, Alika Keene, Israela Groves, Ricshya Walker, Marlo Sweatman, Christina Salmon, Davia Richards, Mikayla Dayes, Shaneil Buckley, Natoya Atkinson, Destiny Powell, Melissa Johnson, Sydnie Street, Jayda Hylton-Pelaia, Alliyah Morgan, Shanhaine Nelson and Tyiesha Nelson.