Posted on January 16, 2012
Jamaica coach Vin Blaine realizes his team will be trying to buck the odds at the CONCACAF Under-20 women’s championship in Panama.
The Caribbean side was drawn into a group on Sunday that includes Mexico, Canada and Haiti.
“On paper we are drawn in the proverbial group of death,” Blaine was quoted by the Jamaica Observer in Monday’s editions. “Definitely not a favorable draw. However, we will have to prepare and go into the championship in a positive frame of mind.”
Blaine is the Jamaican technical co-ordinator of the women’s program.
“No one seeing this draw will be betting on us to go through, but sometimes that’s not a bad position to start from as the pressure of high expectation will not be hanging over the players’ heads,” he added. “They will just have to set their own goals and have the belief in themselves that they can qualify.”
The tournament is scheduled for Estadio Rommel Fernandez in Panama City from March 1-11. The top three teams will qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. That tournament originally was scheduled forUzbekistan, Aug. 18 – Sept. 9, but FIFA announced last month that the European nation would no longer host the tournament due to logistical and technical reasons. Japan has been proposed as the new host.
The Girlz qualified for the CONCACAF tournament after finishing as the best runner-up across two zones in the Caribbean Football Union qualifying tournament in the Dominican Republic and Cuba.
Categories: Canada, Caribbean, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Women, Youth
Tags: CONCACAF Under-20 women's tournament, FIFA Under-20 women's World Cup, Vin Blaine
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