The Guyana Hockey Board (GHB) has been invited to compete in an indoor hockey series in Canada from March 22-24 and has shortlisted a male and a female squad for training.
The two national teams have been invited by Hockey Canada to compete in a four-team competition as preparation for the 2020 Indoor Pan American Cup.
The GHB has already kicked off its 2019 national programme of activities with the indoor developmental men’s team tour of Trinidad & Tobago.
That team placed fourth in the Ventures and third in the UWI Indoors championships, respectively.
President of the GHB Philip Fernandes, in an invited comment, explained the board’s approach to the selection of the squads.
“Consistent exposure to the intensity of international competition is an area we have identified as lacking in the development of our national players. So opportunities like these have to be used to invest in the players that will benefit most from the experience. We have decided to select young squads of predominantly under 30 players who will be around for the next two to three Indoor Pan American Cups, in 2020, 2022 and 2024.
“There are still a few experienced players included in the squads to provide leadership, but this tour is about exposure. Later this year we will be competing in the outdoor Pan American Challenge and the selection for those teams will be strictly performance-based since it’s a continental tournament where we earn world ranking points,” Fernandes explained.
Five members of the indoor developmental men’s team that competed in the Ventures and UWI tournaments [Warren Williams, Nandalall Persaud, Samuel Woodroffe and Nickel Ashby] have indicated that they are unavailable for squad selection due to their academic commitments leading up to their CSEC examinations.
The 26 member women’s training squad is-:Latacia Chung, Minsodia Culpepper, Nicole Eastman, Marisha Fernandes, Marzana Fiedtkou, Trisha Woodroffe, Alysa Xavier(GK), Gabriella Xavier , Abosaide Cadogan, Madison Fernandes, Briawna Gordon (GK), Makeda Harding, Sarah Klautky, Jessica Mittelholtzer (GK), Dacia Woodroffe, Kezia Chinian, Tekeisha Deleon, Donyale Nurse (GK), Mariah Seegobind, Charlia Webb, Aneesa Permaul (GK), Kenisha Wills, Julia Gouveia (GK), Candace Glen, Bushani Kaladeen and Akeaba Singh.
The 23 member men’s training squad is: _Medroy Scotland (GK), Michael Hing (GK), Steven Xavier, Mark Sargeant, Kareem McKenzie, Meshach Sargeant, Robert France, Rayon Branford, Andrew Stewart, Jamarj Assanah, Aroydy Branford, Leon Bacchus, Tivesarid Garnett, Shomere Garnett, David Williams (GK), Paul D’Andrade (GK), Jael Gaskin, Omar Hopkinson, Dominic Alleyne, Stefan King, Hilton Chester, Hilmar Chester and Troy Hodge.
