TRINIDAD and Tobago senior women’s football team coach Kenwyne Jones believes his squad possesses the courage and intensity needed to secure a coveted place at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
The Women Warriors enter their final round of World Cup qualifying at the 2022 Concacaf W Championships (CWC), which kicks off in Monterrey, Mexico on July 4.
Locally-based team staff and players leave for Mexico on Thursday morning and await the arrival of their foreign-based teammates later on in the day.
TT open their campaign against 2020 Tokyo Olympic gold medallists Canada on July 5. Joining them in Group B are Costa Rica and Panama. Group A consists of reigning FIFA Women’s World Cup and CWC champions USA, Mexico, Jamaica and Haiti.
The CWC group stage runs until July 11. At the end of round-robin play, the top two teams from each group will move on to the semi-finals and in doing so, qualify directly for the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Meanwhile, the third-placed teams in each group will qualify for a 2023 World Cup intercontinental playoff.
Canada are ranked sixth on the FIFA women’s rankings, Costa Rica 37th, Panama 57th and TT, a distant 76th, the lowest-ranked team at the CWC.
However, Jones remains confident his team has the depth to make it to the CWC semi-finals and book TT’s first-ever spot at a Women’s World Cup.
“My goal is for them to qualify. I told the team from day one that I do believe in them one hundred per cent and I believe they will qualify. It’s just about going through the stages, ticking the boxes and working really hard to get there.
“We have the talent to do so. The composition of the squad is wonderful at this point and we’re going to go out and give it our best shot.
“We’re just looking forward to it. I think everyone is at the edge of their seat right now, just wanting to lead, to get through the process, and we’re at that point now. I can say that you will see the best of the ladies because this is sometimes a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” he said.
Jones confirmed the team would undergo an eight-day pre-tournament training camp in Mexico. Twenty-five players have made the trip but two will be dropped ahead of the CWC.
At the camp, TT will play three practice matches, two against a Mexican club and an in-house game. These three games will mirror TT’s CWC round-robin match schedule to help players acclimatise to gameplay, training and recovery.
[caption id="attachment_960861" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Trinidad and Tobago senior women's head coach Kenwyne Jones. Photo by Sureash Cholai[/caption]
Skipper Karyn Forbes, who picked up a small injury in the CWC qualifying round in April, has fully recovered and is raring to go.
For the camp, Jones said, “We’re going out there to acclimatise and work on everything else tactically, get familiar with the surroundings and prepare for the tournament.
“It would give us an opportunity to see different combinations and work tactically on things we would like to put forward for the team during the
