- Tennis ace Oskar Bjuroe wins prestigious scholarship
- Intense play as corporate squash heads into final week
- A historic first for Latinos FC
- Elite, Scholars share women’s crowns
- Aaron Jarvis commits to UNLV, dreams of playing professionally
- Cayman’s World Cup qualifying opponents drawn
- BTFC back on top as CIFA Premier League Champions
- Certification offered for football referees
- Footballers to remember Gonzalo with ‘minute of silence’
- Corporate squash league serves up excitement
U15 girls confident ahead of CONCACAF championship
- Updated: 9 August 2016
The Cayman Islands National Under-15 Girls Football team left Grand Cayman on Tuesday, 9 August confident of their chances at the CONCACAF U-15 Girls’ Championship.
A total of 23 squads – 22 from CONCACAF and South American invitee Venezuela – will compete in the second-ever CONCACAF U-15 Girls’ Championship being played at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida.
Cayman has been pooled with Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas and Bermuda in Group E for the opening round. The field has been divided into three groups of five teams and two groups of four teams. All of the group winners, plus the second-place finishers from the five-team groups, will advance to the quarterfinals.
Brianna Poy Fong (3) will captain the Cayman side.
“I feel really excited. I know that we are going to do really well in our tournament and we are going to advance out of our group on top,” said Cayman’s captain, Brianna Poy Fong moments before the team left the Owen Roberts International Airport.
“I feel really excited and I believe all of us feel excited and we hope that we can advance out of our group and make it into [the] quarterfinals,” said Shannelle Bennett, who plays on the left wing and left back. “We hope to make it as far as possible. We hope to win…and I believe we should be able to make it.”
Midfielder/defender Monique Hernandez acknowledged the magnitude of the challenge but was also upbeat about the team’s chances.
The side will rely on Bennett’s defence.
“It’s going to be tough, definitely but I know that we’ve spent a lot of time together as a team that we’ve built a relationship, we know how each other play and we know that if we work together and keep strong, we can make it through,” she said.
Brianna Pong Foy said she was honoured to be given the privilege of leading the side at the championships. “It means a lot. It’s a lot of pressure and it’s a lot to handle but I’m confident in my team and I know we’re going to do well.”
The squad has been training hard ahead of the tournament with the hope of making the country proud with their performance in Orlando. “For me, the thing is good performance in this tournament. [It’s been] maybe the best team [in terms of] preparation to represent Cayman and I am happy with the girls,” head coach Alex Gonzalez pointed out.
Monique Hernandez
The Cayman Islands opens play against Bermuda on Thursday, 11 August at 9:00 a.m. (8:00 a.m. in the Cayman Islands) and the girls believe the time they’ve put in on the training pitch will pay dividends.
“Training has been tough. It gets harder as we get closer and I think we’re ready for this tournament,” said Monique Hernandez.
Related Posts
You must be logged in to post a comment Login