Guyana/USA seal series with 2-0 win over Suriname
THE Guyana/USA women’s football team sealed the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) women’s international Goodwill series with a 2-0 win over Suriname yesterday at the Enmore ground.

Ashley Rodrigues and Britney Persaud netted the winning goals in the 10th and 82nd minutes respectively.

On Thursday, the US players of Guyanese parentage drubbed the local-based ladies 5-0 at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence.

Rodrigues netted a double in the 56th and 59th minutes while Maria Elmasri, Ashlee Samana and Kaitlyn Wong-Yu scored one goal each in the 1st, 22nd and 84th minutes respectively.

Yesterday, however, the North American team was not as forceful and constructive as they were against the locals, as Suriname, despite suffering the 0-2 loss, made the opposition work overtime for their victory.

Rodrigues sent her team into the lead from a counterattack that saw her receive the ball down the middle of the pitch in Suriname’s half of the field. She arrowed to goal and brought the Surinamese custodian off her goal line and clinically lobbed the ball over her head.

From then onwards, the Dutch team composed themselves and fought back gamely, but poor finishing on the part of their strikers was their downfall.

Leading 1-0 at the interval, the North America-based players came out a bit overconfident and did not show that hunger for victory, which allowed their opponents to make inroads into their defence on numerous occasions.

However, with nine minutes remaining in the game, the nippy Persaud latched on to a loose ball and finished with a clinical shot.

After the game, Guyana’s women’s football Technical Director Mark Rodrigues told the media he was happy with the victory “but the girls did not play to the level I was expecting”.

“The level of their play today is not what I was looking for, but this win sends a signal that the Guyana national team is for real,” Rodrigues declared, adding, one of the positives of yesterday’s game is “we have seen the players; we will select to make up the national team to contest the World Cup qualifier next month”.

According to the US-based Rodrigues, he would be happy to have the Guyana squad encamped by the third week in next month, leading up to the World Cup qualifier.

He did not disclose if any of the locally based players have been identified for as part of the World Cup squad.

“There is no more Guyana overseas and Guyana local teams, we’re one right now and this whole week was to serve that purpose, to put together one Guyana team,” Rodrigues stated.

The Technical Director said he knows for certain that the ladies’ team would be playing their World Cup qualifying match on January 22 but he could not say against which country or the venue.

Meanwhile, the locally based ladies’ team will take on the Surinamese today at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground from 16:00 h while tomorrow, the North American combination will face the local ladies at the Blairmont ground from 16:00 h also.