T&T's National Under 17 Women's Team will depart Piarco International Airport today in two groups via Miami and Panama City, en route to Rio de Janeiro where they are scheduled to arrive tomorrow for their two-match training tour. A contingent of 34 persons, including 25 players, will be based at the Hotel Bel Air in Teresopolis which is five minutes away from the Granja Comary, the official training centre for the Brazil Football Federation where T&T will hold its training sessions and engage in two friendly matches against the Brazil National U-17 team.
There was one late change to the team with Jasmine Sampson replacing Trechelle Gibson-Serrette due to emergency reasons, according to team manager Jinelle James. T&T will play Brazil on Sunday and next Tuesday. The Brazilians are favourites to cop the title in September. Head coach Edvaldo Erlacher will call on players of the calibre of Paula, Glaucia and Thais. The latter youngster, a veteran of the New Zealand 2008 campaign, helped Santos to victory in the Copa Libertadores and Copa do Brasil in 2009 alongside compatriot and former youth standout Marta. Brazil will face Ghana, Republic of Ireland and Canada while T&T faces Chile, Nigeria and Korea DPR in September.
One of the new recruits on the T&T team, Canadian-born Emma Abdul, is eligible to represent this country through her father ?Feeiaz Abdul who was born here. And Abdul who attends Riverdale Collegiate Institute and plays for Brampton Rebels, is eager to see how the team performs against the South Americans. "For our trip to Brazil, I think it's very important for our team to make the most of it and play as hard as we can. If we go to Brazil with the right mind-set and win the games it will reflect all the hard work and progress we have been making and show all the other teams that we are ready for the World Cup in September," Abdul said Sunday.
Abdul is already setting her sights on tacking fellow South Americans Chile in the opening game of the Fifa U-17 World Cup on September 5 at the Hasely Crawford Stadium. "I have been envisioning playing Chile since the day of the draw. Imagining a stadium full of fans supporting us in our first match gets me excited just at the thought of it. I think it's going to be a very good opening game," Abdul continued.
Squad:
Keri Myers, Linfah Jones, Shalette Alexander, Camille Borneo, Rehana Omardeen, Khadisha Debesette, Lauren Schmidt, Patrice Vincent, Jonelle Warrick, Tineisha Cobham, Victoria Swift, Nia Walcott, Khadidra Debesette, Patrice Campbell, Nykosi Simmons, Diarra Simmons, Jasmine Sampson, Liana Hinds, Kayla Taylor, Jo Marie Lewis, Camille Charles, Anique Walker, Brianna Ryce, Emma Abdul, Courtney Bahadursingh