The Reggae Girlz yesterday, tomorrow – according to the pros

JAMAICA SHOWED defensive astuteness at the ongoing FIFA Women’s World Cup and are yet to concede a goal. When compared to the 12 they conceded in 2019 at the first time of the asking, the results are astounding.

What are the Reggae Girlz doing right?

And how can they possibly continue to do well when Colombia come calling after exerting so much emotional and physical effort? How will the Reggae Girlz get ready for the round of 16?

Richard Edwards (Former Reggae Boy midfielder)

“In the games against Brazil and France, you could clearly see that Jamaica decided that they were going to play behind the ball, and whenever they get an opportunity to score a goal or go forward, they try to make the best out of the opportunity. You can safely say that we’ve over achieved, so qualifying for the round of 16 means we have already won the World Cup.”

Ryan Thompson (Former Reggae Boy goalkeeper)

“The biggest thing is that it comes down to two factors. First, it’s the coaching that they’re getting on a day-to-day basis, so credit goes to the coaching staff that’s working with them. Also, they’re committed to the cause with every single player you can see they’re working together in every single moment, and that’s a team that will be hard to break down. There’s a lot of players that have seen failure, so right now they’re enjoying the moment and they’ve been making statements loud and clear, and they have to be respected.”

Craig Butler (Founder of Phoenix Academy)

“They’ve been exceptional in terms of man marking and coverage and just downright grit. It’s something to be heralded, and we should be proud of our national girls. They have to recognise that they’ve gone as far as they’ve ever been, and now, they can go even further. However, they haven’t achieved anything as yet and they should put themselves into that perspective. If we can win the World Cup, then let’s keep going, and that should be the mentality and realise there’s more that they, we, can achieve.”

Ludlow Bernard (Harbour View coach)

“What I’m looking at is a well-organised unit and you can look at the team’s shape in defence and see where they’re making it extremely difficult for oppositions to break them down. Also, grit and determination and technical ability of the players certainly enhances their capabilities to produce those performances. I don’t think these girls have anything to lose and I think they’re going to be extremely motivated and go as far as they can go. I don’t want them to look at a Colombian team as a drop down from Brazil and France, but I’m sure Coach [Lorne] Donaldson would be aware of this.”

Andrew Sewell (National U20 goalkeeper coach)

“The girls are playing together, and that might sound simple, but that’s one of the greatest things you can do as a team and knowing your role and responsibility and the coaching staff must take kudos for that. I’ve all the confidence in both the coaching and medical team, and I know that they have their plans. So from the girls stick to their script of playing together, working hard, and Jamaica pushing them on, I’m expecting great things against Colombia.”