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Concacaf Under-20 Championship… Guyana will be competitive and aim for positive results against Guatemala today – Dover
The two goalkeepers working out with GK Coach, Phillip Carrington.
Getting ready for battle! The U-20 Jaguars caught during their practice session yesterday afternoon at the IMG Stadium.
Story and photos by Franklin Wilson in Florida, USA
Compliments of Industrial Safety Supplies,
Secure Innovation & Concepts and Fitness Express
In this historical championship where all 34 Member Association of Concacaf are contesting the Concacaf U-20 Championship here at the IMG Academy in Brandenton, Florida USA, Head Coach of the young Golden Jaguars, Wayne ‘Wiggy’ Dover has disclosed that his charges would be competitive in the four group matches whilst going after positive results.
Concacaf has noted that unlike previous championships which included regional qualifiers in the Caribbean and Central America and one final championship, this year’s redesigned competition ensures that all the participating teams have access to play more top-level football matches.
It is this level of competition that Dover says he relishes for the young lads who are the future of Guyana and it is welcome testing grounds to see where the ‘Land of Many Waters’ is at among their fellow Concacaf nations.
First up for the anxious Guyanese, a mixture of local based and overseas based players, would be Guatemala from 10:30hrs on Field #2 the first fixture in Group F which also has the Cayman Islands, Curacao and El Salvador.
The second match in the group will bring together El Salvador and Curacao from 14:45hrs today. Action kicked off yesterday with eight (8) matches at various fields at the IMG Academy (Soccer Complex). Matches would also be played at the IMG Soccer Stadium and IMG Academy Stadium with all the contesting nations getting a chance to play at the different venues.
Dover reminded that he and his Technical Staff had some six weeks to get the players into some shape and during that time they were able to focus on the physical, technical and tactical aspects of the game.
”We were able to get a couple of training games to give them some playing time but as you would know it was not the type of games that we had really wanted to test where we were at from where we started. We would have loved to have some international matches at this level for the guys to have an appreciation of the speed of the game, the competitiveness, tactics, technical soundness that needs to be applied as well as the mental strength and other pillars required at this very competitive level.”
Despite, Dover said he worked with what was available and saw some encouraging signs displayed by the players in the matches afforded them which allowed the staff to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses.
The final practice match Dover stated was against a strong Elite League side which provided a tough test for the youngsters; a unit which showed their superiority as well as their seniority.
”The lads struggled a bit to cope and that is what we had wanted to see from early in the preparations. Now it’s time for the commencement of the tournament and the real test for these lads we used yesterday, the lone day available to walk them through the pattern in offence, tactical defensive organisation, team organisation and some set plays.”
He posited that the game plan is to be competitive citing that with the inclusion of a number of talented overseas based players, Guyana’s chances have been strengthened and they are looking forward to some exciting performances from their charges.
”The nature of football in many instances we’ve seen over the years is that not always the strongest teams come out on top, we will hold on to that as one of our things to drive us forward and to some great results in this competition. We are positive and will remain in this frame of mind throughout the tournament. We would like to thank the GFF for the efforts made and investment in this programme which can only bring positive results for the nation in the long term.”
Dover also called on all Guyanese at home and in the Diaspora to rally behind the team.
Group Stage Match Schedule for Guyana – Group F
November 2 vs Guatemala @ 10:30hrs
November 6 vs Cayman Islands @ 10:30hrs
November 8 vs Curacao @ 12:45hr
November 10 vs El Salvador @ 19:45hrs
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