BASSETERRE, St. Kitts & Nevis – Jamaica secured a berth in the 2018 CONCACAF Under-20 Women’s Championship on the strength of a first-place finish in the final round of Caribbean qualifying, which concluded Sunday at Warner Park.
In reaching the CONCACAF event for a ninth time, the Reggae Girlz were impressive over the event’s three matchdays, posting a perfect 3-0-0 record, while scoring 11 goals without reply.
“Getting to another CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championship is a wonderful feeling,” said Jamaica head coach Xavier Gilbert. “Being amongst the best eight teams in the region is something to be proud about.
“We accomplished the final round of [Caribbean qualifying] with three clean sheets, so that is something to be proud of. Also, we scored eleven goals, so we are slowly, but surely, building momentum for the CONCACAF event in Trinidad & Tobago.”
Jamaica’s best-ever CONCACAF U-20 placement came in 2006, when it captured fourth place. Next January, Gilbert is aiming a spot in the knockout stages. The top three sides will qualify for the 2018 FIFA Women’s U-20 World Cup in France.
“It is going to be difficult with the likes of Mexico and the United States and Nicaragua in our group,” he finished. “However, our girls are up to the challenge of excelling. We want to qualify for the U-20 Women’s World Cup. We have never qualified for a FIFA tournament for women, so we want to make history.”
Jamaica, Mexico and the United States are the only teams to earn places in every CONCACAF Under-20 Women’s Championship.
