AS Guyana’s senior national football team prepare for their return leg of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers against Barbados, Roti Hut, operated and owned by the Bakewell Group of Companies, has thrown their weight behind the team, starting with a half a million dollars contribution. 
The company yesterday at a simple ceremony at Roti Hut’s Albert Street Georgetown location, handed over the cheque to the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) acting President Franklin Wilson, who spoke profoundly of how important the contribution is to the national team as they make their quest to the FIFA World Cup, hosted in Brazil in 2014.
“This package actually will amount to close to a million dollars cause we’ll be receiving 36 polo T-Shirts for the team to travel, two huge banners with Roti Hut supporting the Golden Jaguars will also be done. And apart from that, the team will be hosted at a launch here on Sunday (Roti Hut) and in Barbados (Roti Hut Plus) next Thursday evening, all of that is part of the contribution,” Wilson said.
He added that, “Bakewell has been always supportive of sports; I think they are the only company in Guyana to have two football teams (Bakewell Topp XX and Bakewell Buxton Stars) and apart from that they are into cricket, so they are no strangers in supporting young people.”
Rajin Ganga, Bakewell’s General Manager, said that, ‘they’re glad to be on board to give what assistance is necessary to help this team. Once they do good Guyana would go forward and once they continue to do well, we will come on board with them again on whatever support we can give.”
Meanwhile, Wilson noted that preparation of the National Team has been progressing smoothly, with the locally based players being kept under the watchful eyes of head Coach Wayne ‘Wiggy’ Dover and he added that the overseas players will begin to arrive this weekend with the Technical Director Jamaal Shabaaz set to arrive on Saturday.
Guyana will play Barbados on October 7 and Bermuda on the 11th, and Wilson pointed out that already, systems are being put in place for the team to participate at the latter game, mentioned. “As you know there’s a requirement of an in-transit visa for some of the players to go to Bermuda, we’ve already activated that process, we hope they all get through so Guyana would be at full strength.”
He went on to make it clear that both of the away games are very important since only the top team from the group will advance.
Guyana is placed in Group B of the CONCACAF Qualifiers, along with Barbados, Bermuda and Trinidad and Tobago with whom they share top honours with, having been the only two undefeated teams so far in their cluster.
With that factor, the GFF head, said that both of their away games are must win situations which will see them setting up a grand show down with the 2006 FIFA World Cup attendees (Trinidad and Tobago) on November 11 (in Guyana) and the return game in the twin Island Republic on November 15.
The Golden Jaguars’ prolific showing so far in the qualifiers has caused some other overseas players to express their interest in representing Guyana.
“We’ve had a player with Guyanese parentage now interested in our team, Wilson added. I’m talking here about the Cort Brothers (Carl and Leon), but one of them is on a try-out but we’ll have one of them for sure and we’re working on finalising arrangements to bring in Ricky Shakes. Unfortunately one of our main players in Christopher Bourn will not be able to play cause of an injury,” the acting GFF head said.
Bourne, Wilson said, is suffering from a torn ligament; an injury in which he says the player will hopefully recover from to take up his defensive midfield role.
It was also made known that central defender JP Rodrigues who was initially named in the team, but missed the first two games, will not be able to represent Guyana in the qualifiers since his injuries seem chronic.
