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Trinidad and Tobago Women’s National Senior Team head coach Jamaal Shabazz has again tried to tone down expectations of the Women Soca Warriors as they prepare to kick off their France 2019 World Cup campaign.
The qualifying series begins on 5 May when Trinidad and Tobago host Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts/Nevis and the US Virgin Islands in Group C.
(Copyright AFP 2016)
All five group winners advance to the final Caribbean qualifying round scheduled for 18-26 August, with the top three finishers going on to the 2018 CONCACAF Women’s Championship from 4-17 October in the United States.
CONCACAF’s top three women’s teams will qualify automatically for the France tournament while the fourth-placed nation will enter an intercontinental play-off.
The Women Warriors have been together for 13 months, under former coach Carolina Morace and then Shabazz, and, during that period, they have played four international friendlies.
However, Shabazz pointed out that the team does not have the player personnel it once did and is unlikely to top its performances in the 2015 qualifying series under coach Randy Waldrum, when they came within one result of the Canada World Cup.
“Where we are now in the women’s game is not where we were in 2014,” Shabazz told TTFA Media. “Therefore, with the utmost respect, we treat this draw and the opponents that we must face. It’s good that we played Panama in these two games and it answered some questions for us with regards to the team and its preparations.
“Of course, we are confident but we will by no means be cocky going forward into this competition. The preparation and approach will reflect that.”
(Copyright Chevaughn Christopher/Wired868)
The National Team will get additional warm-up action next month when they host Suriname (25 April), Grenada (27 April) and Guyana (30 April) in the CFU Challenge Series competition at the Ato Boldon Stadium in Trinidad.
The exhibition tournament should help ensure that the Women Warriors are in good shape when the World Cup qualifying series kicks off the following month.
2018 Concacaf Caribbean Women’s Qualifiers
Round One
[Host nation named first](Group A)
Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Anguilla, Aruba;
(Group B)
Haiti, Martinique, Jamaica, Turks and Caicos Islands, Guadeloupe;
(Group C)
Trinidad & Tobago, Dominica, US Virgin Islands, St Kitts and Nevis, Grenada;
(Group D)
Antigua & Barbuda, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia, Curaçao;
(Group E)
Guyana, Bermuda, Barbados, Suriname.
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Why can’t i ever share these?
This is what I mean, we should be simply upgrading with some younger pieces
..The coach’s assessment of “where we are” is a masterpiece of understatement. Imagine in four years we have gone from being THIS close to a World Cup place to being wary of Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis and the US Virgin Islands. God help us!..
I know Jesus saves, Keith, but I doubt God has the slightest interest in football. Try the other end of the spectrum because, in the international football arena—it’s the real message behind your last three words—it’s Devil take the hindmost.
Doesn’t National teams have succession planning, where we continually develop players.
The players we develop are supposed to be kicking down the door to get in, so there is never a shortage.
You should have identified talents at 10, at 13, at 15, and by now have sufficiently worked, and be announcing that this is there turn 2 years ago. Therefore there should be no hesitation or lack of confidence.
To do that you need leadership
IMO, there was never a succession plan for the women’s team. When the Italian came in and tried to do so, she was met with opposition particularly from within the team. Many, if not most, of the younger players never felt like they had a fair chance of graduating to senior team football.
Junior Noel Maybe you can tell us why there was opposition or what was the opposition about.
You mentioned a part of it Gerard in your previous post. I prefer not to go into detail as it may implicate others.
Succession planning doesn’t exist in Trinidad