Lady Jags to begin journey, against Turks and Caicos in February

THE Lady Jags, Guyana’s Senior Women’s National football team, will take on Dominica and the Turks and Caicos Islands in February in the qualifiers for the 2022 CONCACAF W Championship, a tournament that serves as the regional gateway to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The Guyana Football Federation (GFF), in a release, said the fixtures, rescheduled from November by CONCACAF due to challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, will bring the Lady Jags squad together for the first time since October’s encampment in Puerto Rico, which included two friendly matches against the hosts.

On Wednesday, February 16, Guyana will start their Group F qualification campaign with a home tie against Dominica at the Leonora Stadium, which will kick off at 20:00hrs, followed by an away fixture against the Turks and Caicos Islands on Saturday, February 19. Further details will be announced for the away game.

“The first two rounds will be an extended training camp for us, as we try and assess our players and evaluate where we are as a team,” said head coach Ivan Joseph.
“This will be the first time in my tenure as a coach where we will have our full programme assembled, and it will take us some time to come together as a cohesive unit.”

“Turks & Caicos and Dominica will be formidable opponents, who have been working hard these past few months to build a solid programme,” he added.
“We hope to get the results we need to put us in the right position to advance out of the group, but we will have our hands full.”

After the opening two matches in February, Guyana will face Nicaragua on April 8 and Trinidad and Tobago on April 12 to complete their qualification group matches.

Each of the six group winners will join automatic qualifiers Canada and the United States – the reigning champions – in the 2022 CONCACAF W Championship, which will take place in Mexico in July.
“I am very excited to have our senior team playing in the upcoming W Qualifiers,” said GFF Director of Women’s Programmes Paul Beresford.

“We have a mix of veterans and new players available to us, and I am confident the coaching staff will put a very competitive team together.”

“Both of these games are critical in building momentum and we expect Dominica and Turks & Caicos to present stiff competition,” Beresford continued.

“It will be great to have the women’s team playing in Guyana again, and I expect the football fraternity to come out and support the Lady Jaguars.”