GUYANA will participate in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Caribbean Men’s Cup scheduled from March 2016 – May, 2017, with its team expected to be named by mid-March. The Golden Jaguars has been placed in Group five (5) of seven (7) with Anguilla and Puerto Rico being the other members of group 5. Guyana’s first match will be played against Anguilla on March 23, 2016 at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence at 19:00hrs. The second will be played against Puerto Rico in Puerto Rico on March 29, 2016. Anguilla will play Puerto Rico on March 26 at the Raymond E, Guishard Technical Centre, Anguilla.
National Coach Jamaal Shabazz said there are no more easy teams in football. Speaking about the CFU draw that pits Guyana against Anguilla and Puerto Rico, “There are no more push-overs in international football. The ball is round and the field is rectangular for everyone.
“ How well we prepare is critical. The ability to get the Federation, the staff, the players and the fans to sing the same song from the same book is vital.”
Shabazz intends to have a five-day camp before the games against Anguilla and Puerto and also hold one session a week with the main core of the locally-based players. “We must work to raise the level of players and add to the good work done in the clubs
“ We are nothing without the club coaches; they do all the work with the players week in, week out. We only have the team for short periods, so we must work together,” stated Shabazz.
The Technical Staff is expected to name a squad of thirty (30) players by mid-March.
The competition will be played in two phases – the preliminary phase and the final phase. (please see details below)
Round 1 will be played from March 21-29; Round 2 May 15-21; Round 3 October 3-11; the fifth- place playoff November 7-15; and the finals are scheduled for May 2017.
Among the other teams participating in the tournament are Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, St. Kitts & Nevis, Grenada, St. Maarten, United States Virgin Islands, Cuba, Bermuda, French Guiana, Barbados, Curacao, Guadeloupe, St. Martin, Suriname, Martinique, British Virgin Islands and Dominica. Games will be played in 21 countries.