Head Coach of the Guyana Beach Football Association (GBFA), Abdullah Hamid, has shortlisted 12 players to participate in the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship, scheduled for February 20-26 in Nassau, The Bahamas. The players were engaged in weekend camps from January 9, and full encampment began on January 30 in Linden.
In an invited comment, Hamid said the team’s preparation has been good thus far: “We have been training intensely for two and a half months and the team is very motivated. The mindset among team members is great; they’re excited and ready to go to make Guyana proud.”
As part of the preparations, Guyana has been invited by the Barbados Football Association to participate in that island’s ‘Beach Soccer Showcase’, scheduled for February 10-12 at the Brandon’s Beach, St. Michael, Barbados.
This showcase will feature teams from Trinidad and Tobago, England, Antigua and Barbuda and Barbados and, according to the designated Team Manager, Mark Young, this showcase will serve as a warm-up and “provide the national team much needed exposure to higher quality teams like England…”
The squad is scheduled to depart for Barbados on February 9. Following the completion of the ‘Beach Soccer Showcase’, the team will remain in Barbados for another phase of encampment after which they will depart the island on February 17 for The Bahamas. They are expected to return to Guyana on February 28.
The Guyana squad trains twice daily at the Bayrock Beach Soccer Facility, Linden. The CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship will also serve as FIFA’s Beach Soccer World Cup qualifier for the region.
The squad reads: Trevorn Archibald, Jamal Haynes, Jashawn Moore, Jermaine Grandison, Keon Sears, Kenard Simon, Cordell Johnson, Ethan Sparman, Tony Gilbert, Rodwin Fraser, Michael Wilson and Deshawn Joseph. The technical staff comprises Head Coach Abdulla Hamid, Assistant Coach Dillon Roberts, Team Manager Mark Young and Physiotherapist Michelle Jackman.
