BRADENTON, Florida – For United States Head Coach Mark Carr, a few slight adjustments made all the difference in his team’s 3-2 semifinal win over Haiti at the CONCACAF Women’s Under-17 Championship.
With the score locked at 1-1 after the first 45 minutes, Carr used the intermission to reset his team’s strategy. The result was a pair of early second half goals in the 49’ and 50’ and ultimately a ticket to the 2018 Under-17 Women’s World Cup.
“We made some adjustments, we targeted some areas and both goals were something that we talked about at halftime. To score goals like that one after another, it killed the game off,” said Carr in a post-match interview with CONCACAF.com.
While Carr’s tactical change bore fruit, it was also the heart showed by the U.S. players that vaulted the U.S. to victory.
“I’m really proud of this team, how resilient we were, how we stayed in the game. I think we were more aggressive, took initiative and made some adjustments at the half and I think you saw the response, so we’re really happy. We’re really pleased and I’m just so proud of these players that they’ve punched their ticket to the World Cup,” said Carr.
With a fourth Under-17 Women’s World Cup now clinched, the U.S has its sights set on winning a fourth CWU17 crown when they face Mexico in the final on Tuesday.
“Being a champion is an expectation for us every time. We know how important it is and when you wear the U.S. crest it’s about championships and now our focus is the championship in the next game against Mexico,” concluded Carr.
