Jamaal Shabazz, coach of the senior national women’s football team believes that local football fans should be fair in their criticisms towards Technical director of women’s football in T&T, Even Pellerud and the performance of the team in the Fifa U-17 Women’s World Cup. “Let us be fair, the man (Pellerud) has done a great job up to this point,” said Shabazz. T&T’s U-17 Soca Princesses were knocked out of the U-17 Women’s World Cup, currently taking place in T&T, with 1-0 and 2-1 defeats to Korea DPR and Nigeria respectively after winning their opening match against Chile 2-1.
Since then, many fans and coaches have criticised Pellerud for not being able to get the team into the second round of the competition, claiming that the Norwegian had ample time and resources to do so. According to Shabazz however, those who share such a view are ignorant of the mechanics of training a team for a World Cup. “We cannot move from where players cannot kick the ball over 20 metres to winning a World Cup in two years,” explained Shabazz. “Show me anyone who thinks this can happen and I will show you someone living in the madhouse.” Shabazz explained that it is very easy for coaches in the schools and clubs to complain that Pellerud and his team did not go into the second round, although very little coaching was done at those levels with the players inherited by Pellerud.
“I think the team has shown tremendous development from two years ago in the area of fitness, intensity and defensive organisation.” “We had a team playing against world quality teams like Nigeria and Korea and actually competing with them.” Shabazz said most fans viewed the performance of the team ignorant of their progression and as a result only saw the team’s deficiencies in ball possession and offensive play. “I am saying, based on my experience, it takes years to build a programme and the glass held by the U-17 team was half full, rather than half empty.”
He said the challenge now is to continue improving the team, but admitted that such a feat will not happen overnight. Shabazz said how far the U-17 and all other female national teams go in the future will be dependent on those who make the final decisions where funding is concerned. “The government, who interestingly enough is run by a woman, will have a major role to play in where this team and women’s football in general advances in the near future. It is clear that women’s football has excited the nation, so it is necessary now to build the team.”