Maylee Attin-Johnson will lead T&T’s senior Soca Princesses when they begin their quest for the top spot in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Final Round Tournament.
T&T will start its campaign against St Lucia on Monday at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya from 7 pm, following Guyana and Barbados encounter which will open the event at 5 pm.
A squad of 23 players went into camp on Tuesday with coach Jamaal Shabazz making his final cut down to 18 players yesterday.
The unit includes professional player Ahkeela Mollon. Though lamenting the fact that his side could have been a bit fitter (physically), Shabazz explained that his team will undoubtedly “grow stronger as the days wear on” and he is confident they will do T&T proud.
T&T will also host Group G, consisting of Cuba, Haiti, Antigua and Barbuda and Puerto Rico, which was originally scheduled to be held in Cuba, but will now be staged at the Mannie-Ramjohn Stadium, Marabella.
T&T TEAM:
Goalkeepers: Kimika Forbes, Kerri Meyers
Defenders: Ayana Russell, Arin King, Anastacia Prescot, Analis Cummings (standby), Daniel Blair, Affiyah Mathias, Rhea Belgrave
Midfielders: Nadia James, Janine Francois, Dernelle Mascall, Avanelle Issac, Karen Forbes, Kennya Cordner, Jenelle Nedd, Ahkeela Mollon
Strikers: Maylee Attin-Johnson (captain), Candace Edwards, Mariah Shade
Final round fixtures
Group F
Venue: Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya
May 10:
Guyana vs Barbados
T&T vs St Lucia
May 12:
St Lucia vs. Guyana
T&T vs Barbados
May 14:
Barbados vs St Lucia
T&T vs Guyana
Group G
Venue: Mannie Ramjohn Stadium, Marabella
May 11:
Cuba vs Puerto Rico
Antigua & Barbuda vs Haiti
May 13:
Haiti vs Cuba
Puerto Rico vs Antigua & Barbuda
May 15:
Haiti vs Puerto Rico
Cuba vs Antigua & Barbuda
Soca Princesses kick off Gold Cup quest.
By: Shari John (T&T Guardian).
A confident T&T senior Soca Princesses will kick off their Caribbean Football Union Second Round Women’s Gold Cup Qualifying campaign against St Lucia in the feature match of a double-header at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya from 7 pm tonight. In the first match in Group F, Barbados and Guyana will lock horns from 5pm.
The local squad coached by Jamaal Shabazz held its final training session yesterday at the match venue and at the end of the session team captain Maylee Attin-Johnson said she was confident that T&T will outplay their regional counterparts.
The 24-year-old, who celebrated her birthday yesterday, said that though her team was not as prepared as they would have liked to be, due to the fact that most of the players were foreign based, there was a lot of chemistry in the team and the girls had been playing well together. Coach Jamaal Shabazz also expressed confidence in his team ahead of its opener.
Commenting on the make up of his team Shabazz boasted, T&T will also host Group G, consisting of Cuba, Haiti, Antigua and Barbuda and Puerto Rico, which was originally scheduled to be held in Cuba, but will now be staged at the Mannie-Ramjohn Stadium, Marabella from tomorrow until Thursday.
At the end of the two round-robin groups, the top two teams will qualify for a third round, four-team series from which the top three will qualify for the Concacaf Women’s Gold Cup to be played in October.
The second round group winner and the best second place team from the two groups in T&T will also qualify for the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games carded for Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, July 17 to August 1.
Puerto Rico qualified as host. Already qualified for the Gold Cup are Canada, Mexico, USA, Costa Rica and Guatemala. Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador have qualified for the CAC Games.