Guyana’s national female hockey coach Phillip Fernandes said despite his side’s lack of consistent international exposure, he believes they are more complete and possess the quality to challenge for medals at the upcoming Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games.
Speaking exclusively to Stabroek Sports, the Guyana Hockey Board (GHB) President said “It is always difficult to predict what the team’s performance will be since we are absent from international competition for so long. All of the other teams in the competition compete more regularly than we do and 90% of them would have just participated in the World League that was held in September in Kingston, Jamaica”.
Fernandes said “Guyana cannot afford the expensive travel to compete as regularly as this and therefore cannot benchmark our level or compare our improvements with those of our regional counterparts very often. If we base our current team against itself over the past few years, I think we have a more complete and rounded team going into this competition”.
He noted “We have the setback of having more players (six) being based overseas and cannot train with the locally based squad but fortunately they are all active and have been playing some level of hockey where they are”.
“Given these factors, I am optimistic of the team’s chances and feel that it has a shot at a CAC medal. A lot will hinge on our opening match against the Dominican Republic as that is an unknown side since Guyana has never competed against them and they were semi-finalists at the last CAC games,” added Fernandes.
Queried about the status of the team’s preparation, he said “The team is in its final stage of preparation. I am very pleased with the progress of the players and especially the new players who have been showing great improvement as the training progresses. We have three players representing the country for the very first time and they have so far been performing very well in training games”.
“The weather has been kind to us as we have been having mostly sunny days which is quite different from our training experience for the Pan Am Cup last year. We are currently focused on correcting a few of our defensive team concepts and working on set pieces for these last two weeks before the games begin” he added.
Questioned what was the criteria used to select the side, he said “The side was selected based on previous international performance along with performance in local tournaments, training and selection matches.
The overseas players have all indicated their hockey schedules and those selected were only players who have proven themselves to be among the top performers for Guyana in the recent past”.
Asked who will be some of the key players during the tourney, Fernandes said “Hockey is a 16-player team game and so of course we need many strong players in order to be competitive. I can however speak about a few that have performed well for us in the past and from whom we are expecting good performances.
He further said “Goalkeeper Alysa Xavier is now playing hockey in the USA on a University scholarship and has therefore been unable to train with the team. While I have not been able to see Alysa play in the last few months, she has already established herself as one of the top goalkeepers in the region. The position of goalkeeper is a difficult one as there is absolutely no room for error”.
According to Fernandes “If Alysa can maintain her confidence and composure in a manner to match her skill then the team is on solid ground. National vice-captain and sweeper Ulrica Sutherland has indicated that she is nearing the end of her international career but this is hardly noticeable in her performance. Ulrica is a tremendous athlete and one player we very seldom substitute during a match”.
“The duo of Ulrica and Alysa will be vital to keep our defense solid. In attack, we anticipate seeing a different and much improved Aliyah Gordon. Aliyah is a shining star waiting to explode on the international scene. At 16 years of age, she is the youngest player on the team but possesses some of the best stick skills coupled with an abundance of speed. I think Aliyah can make a big difference to Guyana’s if she plays to her potential” he added.
Quizzed what Guyana can expect from the other nations from a competitive level, he said “Guyana concedes a huge advantage to other nations in that we are the only country without an artificial surface on which to train.
This is a sizable handicap and remains the single biggest challenge to our national hockey teams”.
Fernandes said “The other nations will be more rehearsed as they are able to practice the game exactly as it is to be played on a regular basis while we are left to train tactics on grass and techniques on a much reduced court. In addition to this disparity, we trail the other regional nations who are attending these games in international exposure”.
The national setup is expected to depart local shores on November 13th to compete in the CAC games slated to be hosted in Vera Cruz, Mexico from November 15th-23rd.
Guyana has been placed in group-B which comprises of defending champions Trinidad and Tobago, Bermuda and the Dominican Republic. They will open their campaign on November 15th against the Dominican Republic.
Guyana will then battle the defending champs in the second match on November 17th and will finish their group campaign on November 19th against Bermuda.
The complete squad reads Alysa Xavier (GK), Ulrica Sutherland, Ashley DeGroot, Tiffany Solomon, Maria Munroe, Trisha Woodroffe, Aliyah Gordon, Marzana Fiedtkou, Leigh Sandison, Gabriella Xavier, Kerensa Fernandes, Chantelle Wales, Samantha Fernandes, Shebiki Baptiste, Tekeisha Deleon and Princessa Wilkie.
