Latest update January 18th, 2025 7:00 AM
Dover hails composition of Golden Jaguars 23-man squad
– Guyana to face Grenada on Saturday at CONCACAF Gold Cup Prelims
By: Rawle Toney
Kaieteur Sports – Guyana’s Senior Men’s National Football Team is gearing up for the CONCACAF Gold Cup Preliminary round, with Head Coach Jamaal Shabazz and his assistant, Wayne Dover, announcing the 23-man squad that will be taking on Grenada on June 17.
Guyana is making its third appearance at the Gold Cup, but has only once played in the tournament’s Main Draw which came in 2019, while bowing out at the preliminary round in 2021.
Curtez Kellman will be pivotal in the midfield for Guyana against Grenada.
Wayne Dover will lead the Golden Jaguars into battle in the absence of head coach Jamaal Shabazz.
The Golden Jaguars will roar into action against the men from the Spice Isle at the DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida from 9:00pm on Saturday, and prior to the team’s selection, Dover had lamented that the best-possible players will make the cut when the time comes.
Dover and Shabazz leaned on Samuel Cox, Liam Gordon, Emery Welshman, Akel Clarke, Kai McKenzie-Lyle, Elliot Bonds, Kadel Daniel, Neil Danns, Stephen Duke-McKenna, Trayon Bobb, Omari Glasgow, Curtez Kellman and Daniel Wilson, given the fact that they were part of the team that played against Guatemala in the last outing of the Gold Cup, in the preliminary round.
Jonathan Grant, Jalen Jones, Marcus Simmons, Tre Mitford, Deon Moore, Renell McKenzie-Lyle, Leo Lovell and Daniel Wilson will be having their first taste of the CONCACAF showpiece.
Following the team’s selection, Dover hailed the composition of the team, pointing out, “as we started our preparation, we’ve seen some steady progress that we will continue to build towards the game. We have our players back, up and running on four cylinders. We are confident that we have the skillset to compete and give a good result.”
Guyana is ranked 170 and Grenada 166 in the FIFA Men’s World Ranking, while CONCACAF ranks Guyana at 18 and Grenada at 25.
Veteran Neil Danns was named in the Golden Jaguars 23-man squad for the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The Golden Jaguars qualified for the Concacaf Gold Cup Prelims following a second place finish in Group C of League B in the 2022–23 Concacaf Nations League.
Dover will be deputizing for Shabazz who is unable to travel with the team for the important engagement in Florida.
However, this is not new territory for Dover, who has previously served as the country’s Senior Men’s National Team Head coach in 2009 – 2010 and then again in 2017.
In fact, Dover was at the helm of the Golden Jaguars’ last outing against Grenada – an International Friendly in 2017 at the Grenada National Stadium, St. George’s – where they lost 1-0.
Despite their confidence and preparation, Dover is managing expectations and not making any guarantees of victory, only stating, “The game will be competitive; the team that plays well, makes the least mistakes and score their chances will most-likely come out the winner.”
“Internally, the players know what they’re preparing for and they’re confident as well in our approach to the game and we know collectively we can do a good job, so there’s no hype amongst the staff. We know there’s a process in how we go about the game,” Dover added.
Dover stated that their aim is to continue to prepare and try to do their best to get results. He cited Venezuela as an example of a team that was once considered the whipping boys of the South American continent but kept going until they became a formidable force.
If successful against Grenada on June 17, the Golden Jaguars will face the winner between Guadalupe and Antigua and Barbuda for a chance to play in the Main Draw against Canada, Guatemala, and Cuba in Group D.
Initially, Guyana would’ve played the winner between Trinidad and Tobago and Guatemala, but Trinidad and Tobago have since qualified for the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup main draw following a verdict from FIFA.
The Trinidad and Tobago Football Association won a protest against Nicaragua, who fielded an ineligible player during the Concacaf Nations League. This included the player playing in a 2-1 win over T&T and also topping Group C in League B.
The Angus Eve-led squad will replace Nicaragua in Group B and be grouped alongside Jamaica, USA and one of the winning teams from the Gold Cup Prelims.
- CONCACAF, Jamaal Shabazz, old Cup Preliminary, Rawle Toney, uyana’s Senior Men’s National Football Team
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