Pumped and ready for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in France 7 June-7 July, Jamaica’s women’s football squad, known affectionately as the Reggae Girlz, were welcomed to the City of Miramar, Florida by the city’s Vice Mayor Alexandra Davis, Consul General of Jamaica to Miami, Oliver Mair, along with Reggae Girlz Foundation President Michelle Adamolekum.
The week-long send-off celebrations involved a summit which brought together athletes and high level leaders and professionals in sports, education, and politics who gave advice and encouragement to the Girlz as they ‘Go for Gold’ in France. But, perhaps the most valuable and inspiring words came from the team members, coaches, and other Jamaican athletes.
Role Models
“As far as competing in France, regardless of the results, as a team, as a country, we focus on younger kids in Jamaica getting to this level that we have paved for them. We want to just give back to our community in whatever way we can to inspire younger kids,” said Team Captain and Defender, Konya Plummer.
She added that training is also a priority, but it’s the quality of the training that matters.
“It’s not how hard the training is, it’s how hard you go out there and work. Everyone on the team make it their job to inspire each other by the work they are putting in on the field, and that has become our community.”
Echoing the sentiment, former track and field Olympic Gold Medalist Sanya Richards-Ross urged the footballers to keep country first and embrace their responsibility as role models.
“One of the things I think is needed is for young people to have role models, people they can look up to and touch. I really believe that kids can’t be what they can’t dream, what they can’t see… Remember that to whom much is given much is expected. You guys are crossing barriers and creating history, so many kids are looking up to you. So, you are not only representing yourselves and your families and God, you represent the country of Jamaica. And you open doors for little girls who will eventually walk through those doors,” said an impassioned Richards-Ross.
Putting in the Work
Of course, part of putting in the work to reach this level comes from effective coaching. Head Coach Hue Menzies chalks it up to placing the team in the right environment, in addition to coaching and training strategies. He noted that some of the squad have played all over the world including Norway, Italy, the USA, in addition to playing for their respective universities.
“So, we have to get them acclimated and formulated into one unit. We purposely handpicked players who have similar tendencies. So it makes it a lot easier to make an adaptation. You don’t get developed in your national programme, it’s what you do away from the programme. So, it’s important the type of environment they are in. We purposely put them in certain environment to help accommodate the style of football we like to play. It’s a process that we’ve studied and re-studied,” explained Menzies.
He added: “I understand the components of football. I coach, I love the game, But the game is this much [creating a small window with his hands], it’s everything else around you. All of them have played with the girls they will compete against at the World Cup. There is no fear factor. For example they’ll be playing Marta [Marta Vieira da Silva is a top Brazilian footballer who also plays for Florida’s Orlando Pride football team and considered the best female player of all time]. They respect Marta, but they don’t fear her. We feel we have the best players in the world.”
Khadijah ‘Bunny’ Shaw, who plays Forward, is an example of that calibre of players. Scoring the most goals in the qualifying series to get to the World Cup, with the 19th goal giving Jamaica the edge, she takes it all in stride giving her teammates kudos. But, her talent has been noticed; she recently signed a sponsorship deal with Nike.
“This deal won’t really change anything that I’ve been doing all along. All the hard work and dedication that I’ve put in year round just showed. Everything I’ve done and achieved so far, is thanks to my teammates because they’ve been there for me. So, at the end of the day, even though I am the one collecting the award, I have to give thumbs up to my teammates,” said Shaw.
Grassroots
With an average age of twenty-two, Coach Menzies noted that this senior team will compete in at least two more World Cups. But, his focus is also on the younger players under his tutelage.
Said Menzies: “It’s not just about the senior team, it’s about the youth at sixteen, seventeen. Some of these kids we are taking through the same process to enhance their natural skills, and we have to keep that going. That’s where we need so much financial help and sponsorship. The senior team will get their due, but the younger teams, that’s the grassroots”.
In fact, the establishment of the Reggae Girlz Foundation in 2008 has played an all-important role in the acceptance and sustainability of women’s football in Jamaica. The Foundation’s President, Michelle Adamolekum explained:
“Our sole mission is to work to level the playing field in women’s soccer for girls across the world. What that means is we want to be able to provide them with monetary and non-monetary support to be able to participate and achieve their goals. Our strategies are simple; it’s really to bring awareness across our global diaspora about the Reggae Girlz and about the opportunities, the gaps that are currently facing women in football today.”
“Everything is coming to fruition now,” said Coach Menzies, adding, “we feel confident going into this World Cup.”
