Turks and Caicos To Participate in the Concacaf Girls U15 Championship
The Turks and Caicos Football Association (TCIFA) will participate in the Concacaf Girls Under 15 Championship in Tampa, Florida. The TCIFA plans to use this tournament as an opportunity to provide additional competition as they seek to develop the technical and tactical ability of these young female players.
The Confederation of North, Central American And Caribbean Football Association is one of FIFA's six continental organizing bodies for association football in the world and hosts the Girls Under 15 Championship biennially. This championship tournament has not been held since 2018 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
“Our U15 Girls Championship will provide hundreds of girls from across North America, Central America and the Caribbean with an opportunity to compete and experience all aspects of a top-level Concacaf competition,” said Concacaf General Secretary Philippe Moggio.
The Championship will be held on 31st July through the 7th August at Tournament SportsPlex of Tampa Bay in Tampa, Florida. The TCIFA team will be led by Head Coach, Olivia Graveley and Assistant Coach Kerry Trotman. “We have been working hard towards ensuring that we are competitive in this year’s competition. I’m sure some games won’t be easy but we have a resilient group of girls that are focused on taking it to the next level,” said Coach Olivia.
Assistant Coach Kerry Trotman is from Barbados, and was invited to the Turks and Caicos Islands specifically for this Concacaf tournament. “Arriving in the Turks and Caicos Islands just over a month ago was inspiring, and I was humbled to meet a group of intelligent young players eager to learn and grow. This experience has been a positive yet challenging one coming into a new environment with high expectations. The hospitality from the administrative staff, players, and coaches has been welcoming and optimistic.”
Assistant Coach Kerry said the daily interactions with the team, both on and off the field, have brought a renewed sense of purpose to her coaching. “It has been an exciting process as our players have limited 11v11 competitive experience. The coaching staff has strategized on identifying our strengths and the critical areas we need to develop, not only for the upcoming tournament but for the long term. Weekly games against more experienced opponents have been instrumental in ensuring that our players are given the best opportunity to ready themselves. The young ladies continue to put in the hard work and are focused on achieving their personal and team goals ahead of their opening game on July 31st, 2022 at 9 A.M. The team is playing with heart and passion, and if I had one thing to ask, it would be for the people of Turks and Caicos to show your support as they are the future.” she said.
This year’s team will be in League C of the championship. League C will have teams from Anguilla, Aruba, Belize, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and US Virgin Islands. League A will have Canada, Costa Rica, Haiti, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the United States, and the guest nation.
League B will consist of Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Bermuda, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guyana, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Trinidad and Tobago.
For Leagues B and C specifically, the three group winners and the best second-place finisher will go on to the semifinals of their respective League. The remaining teams in each League will compete in an additional match for the final position in the competition. The straight knockout stage of each League will be disputed in an elimination format, beginning with the semifinals, then a final and third-place match. Concacaf will announce the respective groups and schedule for the competition in the upcoming weeks.
Dane Ritchie, Technical Director of TCIFA commented, “In regards to the Girls U15 Championship to be held in Tampa Florida, this is a continuation of the development of these young players who participated last year in the U14 Girls tournament in the Dominican Republic. These same girls minus a few who are now too old placed second in their group and will look to perform just as well or even better in this year's tournament”. He continued, “The coaches have been working really hard with these players to get them to the required level to be able to compete. The players are growing in confidence every day during training and will be prepared for these games.”