Senior team striker, Gabrielle DeSuza, leads the Antigua and Barbuda Football Association (ABFA) selections for the Concacaf Under-20 Women’s Qualifiers, as they prepare to take on regional powerhouse Haiti in their opening clash here on Friday.
The player, who also plays locally for Wadadli FC, is joined by Abigail Donalds and Iresseia Allen on the frontline. Also making the final 21 are midfielders Ozora Roberts and K’neice Browne alongside defender Dequania Henry and goalkeeper Alyssa Laviscount.
Coach of the team and former national player, Karen Warner, said the players are ready for the task at hand.
“Every week we have a practice match, sometimes twice per week where we played against Generation Next under-17 boys. We played against the national under-17 boys and we played against the under-15 national boys so they had preparation going into the tournament. They are ready … and even yesterday [Monday] after the training session they were ready to play. Everybody is on a high, the team is on a high so it’s just to come on the 21st and we go out and play,” she said.
Warner said the road has however, not been without its bumps but added the players, parents and coaching staff all worked together in ensuring the best possible outcome.
“Schools are open. Girls are preparing for CXC and because of that some of them have after-classes, so we had some challenges because on a given day there would be players missing so we never had all of the players we needed. … I just want to thank the girls for working through the challenges we were facing and also to the parents who took time to pick them up from classes and making sure they get to training at a certain time,” she said.
The former striker urged supporters to come out and support the young Benna Girls as they face stiff competition from all the other teams in the group.
“They are basically looking for their schools and their communities to come out and support them, so it would be really good for the communities and the schools can come out and show their support to these girls so they could see that persons are out there cheering them on,” Warner said.
Play will run from February 21 to 25, 2024 at the ABFA’s Technical Center on Sir Sydney Walling Highway. The other teams in the group are Belize and Guyana with matches scheduled for 10:00am and 3:00pm daily.
Squad: Defenders: Dequania Henry, Karmeilla Hughes, Kayla Melvin, Abisha Henry, Thedia Browne, Shemequa Benjamin, Denovia Jarvis; Midfielders: Ajahna Martin, Mia Lake, Daniella DeSuza, K’neice Browne, Azaliyah Peterson, Latoya Williams, Zoya Simon, Ozora Roberts; Forwards: Abigail Donalds, Gabrielle DeSuza and Iresseia Allen. Reserves: Orieanna Cole (defender) and Oniyah Prince (goalkeeper).
Management: Karen Warner (head coach), Lorraine Charles (assistant coach), Nikisha Samuel (goalkeeper coach), Lakiesha Samuel (equipment manager), Anya Allen (physio), McLean Lawrence (trainer) and Diane Anthony (team manager).
