The Reggae Girlz return to the World Cup to battle it out in the "Group of Death"
Key Points(5)
- <span style="font-weight: 400;">2023 marks the 9th edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup -- the premiere international women’s football competition.
- This year’s competition is jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand, and was recently expanded to include 32 teams, up from the previous competition’s 24.
- Thanks in part to this expanded format, this edition of the tournament is welcoming more than the powerhouse teams of England, France, USA etc.
- The squad is Jamaican in every sense, with talent from its own shores bolstered by patriotic US and England-born athletes of Jamaican descent.
- Despite improving drastically from their last World Cup appearance, the Jamaicans have an uphill battle to qualify out of Group F.
2023 marks the 9th edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup -- the premiere international women’s football competition. This year’s competition is jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand, and was recently expanded to include 32 teams, up from the previous competition’s 24. Thanks in part to this expanded format, this edition of the tournament is welcoming more than the powerhouse teams of England, France, USA etc. For the first time ever two Caribbean teams, Haiti and Jamaica will compete in the group stages with dreams of advancing to the knockout round.
The Reggae Girlz will face France in their first World Cup game on Sunday, July 23 at 6 am EST.
The Reggae Girlz
Jamaica's Reggae Girlz is the first Caribbean team to make consecutive appearances at the Women's World Cup and are looking to push out of the group stages for the first time in their young competitive history. The squad is Jamaican in every sense, with talent from its own shores bolstered by patriotic US and England-born athletes of Jamaican descent. Despite improving drastically from their last World Cup appearance, the Jamaicans have an uphill battle to qualify out of Group F. France and Brazil, who are 5th and 8th respectively, will prove staunch competition. Panama is the fourth member of the group and is no pushover.
Playing Style
Despite the underdog status, the Jamaican national team has an attack to be feared. The team’s wide players combine slick passing with head turning speed to get past opposition and open up avenues for incisive passes and crosses into the box. Solai Washington, Kameron Simmonds, and Kalyssa van Zanten in particular are capable of beating any defender. Every offensive move is in service of the ace up top, Khadija “Bunny” Shaw. A world class talent, Shaw finished her 2nd season in the Women’s Super League (WSL), the most competitive and talented women’s football division in the world, as the runner up in the race for the golden boot, awarded every year to the player with the most goals in a season.
Defensively the team is a mixed bag. Much of the defense from the 2019 tournament has returned and although talented, the defense is inconsistent. The Reggae Girlz have repeatedly come undone against teams with strong attacks. In the qualifiers, Jamaica lost 5-0 to the USA national team and 3-0 to the Canadian team.
Coaching
Guiding the team is former national team player head coach Lorne Donaldson. Alongside previous head coach Hue Menzies, Donaldson guided the Reggae Girlz to their historic qualification in 2019. Despite a temporary departure due to concerns with the Jamaica Football Federation, Donaldson returned to lead the team ahead of the crucial Concacaf Championship last year, and cemented the Reggae Girlz as a frightening attacking force.
Controversy
The Reggae Girlz have captured the hearts of neutrals around the world with their bombastic attacking style and an underdog story that’s screaming for a film adaptation. However some of the team’s toughest battles have come off the pitch and against their own football federation.
In 2008, the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) pulled funding from the senior women’s programme and the women’s Olympic program. Without funding, the team had to pull out of the 2011 World Cup qualifiers and was subsequently disbanded.
Six years passed before Cedella Marley, daughter of legendary Reggae singer Bob Marley, stepped in as the official ambassador of the women’s team. She launched a fundraising campaign “Strike Hard for the Reggae Girlz!” to raise funds for pay, travel expenses, nutrition and equipment.
In 2019, after a recruitment drive calling for players with Jamaican heritage born in the US and UK, the team became the first Caribbean team to qualify for the Women’s World Cup. Despite the achievement, the players and staff had to go on strike to receive compensation for their performance from the JFF.
The issues have continued with players taking to social media to decry their professional conditions. The statement touched on the distraction the team felt due to the lack of support from the JFF which included little to no planning, coordinating transportation, setting up accommodation, proper compensation etc.
Conclusion
All eyes are on Group F, already billed as this year’s “group of death.” The
Reggae Girlz will have to be at their best to take points from their matchups against Brazil and France. Boasting top talent throughout the roster, this could be the year the team breaks through their glass ceiling.
