‘We gave it our best shot’

Jamaica’s Under-15 Reggae Boyz missed out on qualifying for the top tier of the tournament phase of the FIFA Under-15 World Cup and Festival in Baku, Azerbaijan, yesterday after suffering a 5-1 defeat to a well-oiled Czech Republic outfit in their final Group AB qualification-stage match.

The young Boyz went ahead through a second-minute header but surrendered the lead and trailed 2-1 at half-time.

They then conceded three more goals in the second half to slump to their first defeat in five matches at the tournament.

Jamaica finished second in the group on 12 points, three behind the Czechs, who advanced to Tier A.

Assistant coach of the young Reggae Boyz, Lewin Purser, said they entered the match well prepared but their opponents proved too strong.

“The boys did what they could. I think the preparation for this Czech opponent was a good one. We had a good plan going into the game. We gave it our best shot. They are a quality team and I think they can go all the way,” he told The Gleaner.

He said the team lost possession in key areas at times, which proved costly and did not do enough to be a genuine attacking threat over the 40 minutes.

“We could have done a little better in the final third, but I think the boys did their best in the circumstances,” he maintained.

Although disappointed not to qualify for the top-tier tournament, Purser pointed out that Tier B will still feature several strong, high-quality teams capable of providing stern competition.

“We are just a little bit disappointed because you wanted to be in the top tier to experience the big boys, but we are going to play against some top teams just the same in the Tier II.

“France and those people will be playing alongside us and we are hoping that we can match up to their level and meet them at some stage to see where we are at.

“England might be in it too. So you have some good teams to come and we are trying to keep our heads and keep the boys to carry on.

“Our aim was to try and qualify for the top prize, to be in the Tier I. We missed out on it but we are getting good experience from the tournament. Although we are a little bit disappointed, we are not too disappointed, knowing that we could have done a little bit more, but I think we did our best,” he said.

The Reggae Boyz’ opponents in the next stage are yet to be determined. They are awaiting the completion of other matches before learning their next assignment.

livingston.scott@gleanerjm.com