Trinidad and Tobago’s Under 17 Women’s Team are counting down to the start of the World Cup qualifying quest as they look ahead to the CONCACAF Caribbean U17 preliminary phase which takes place at the Ato Boldon Stadium from August 23-27th.
The squad is currently training up to four days per week under head coach Jamaal Shabazz. T&T will face US Virgin Islands in their opening Group A match on August 23rd at 7:30pm at the Ato Boldon Stadium. They then take on Curacao on August 25th at 7:30pm and close off the group phase against Grenada at 7:30pm on August 27th, also at the Ato Boldon Stadium, the home of football.
The other Caribbean groups are Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Anguilla and Bahamas w in Group B; Guyana, Barbados and Cuba are in Group D, while St. Vincent & The Grenadines, St. Kitts and Nevis and Jamaica are in Group E.
“It’s been a very interesting three weeks with these youngsters since I took over the preparations,” Shabazz told TTFA Media.
“From dealing with senior men’s team at the beginning of the year to now working with the Under 17 Girls is a most humbling and rewarding lesson in my career as a coach. ”
Shabazz commented on the shape of the team at the moment, saying they were in a good state ahead of the upcoming matches.
“I am happy with the way that the players and staff responded to my entry into the program. We were slaughtered a year ago at Concacaf U-15 as then they were a bunch of beginners entering the world of football for the first time. One year later we shall approach this CFU Qualifiers with courage and confidence,” he added.
Shabazz said it was evident that the preparations undergone by the team over the past few months prior to his appointment, has had a positive effect on its outlook and he was anticipating that the current preparations will aid in pushing them past the upcoming preliminary stage.
T&T are vying for one of eight places at the 2018 CONCACAF Women’s U-17 Championship which will be the 6th edition of the CONCACAF Women’s U-17 Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by CONCACAF for the women’s under-17 national teams of the confederation. The top three teams of the tournament will qualify for the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Uruguay as the CONCACAF representatives.