The National Under-16 netball team wings out for Jamaica via Trinidad and Tobago this morning to participate in the Caribbean Netball Association 10th Jean Pierre competition.
The manager and assistant coach is Shondell Samaroo while Lawrence Kellman will perform the duties of the head coach. The players are Shonette Estwick, Shanika Tiffany Estwick, Tessa Trim, Joy-Ann Blair, Simonica Fanfair, Christine Samuels, Simona Hopkinson, Alisha Nedd, Tasnica Lovell and Shameza Subrattie.
The team will kick off the tournament with a match against The Cayman Islands tomorrow and on Saturday they will oppose Trinidad and Tobago from 07:00 hrs and Barbados later in the day from 18:00hrs.
On Sunday Guyana play Antigua & Barbuda from 17:45hrs and the following day they will go up against St Lucia. Host country Jamaica is their next stop at 19:00 hrs on Tuesday with the final game being against Dominica next Wednesday.
The team is expected to depart Jamaica for Guyana on 30th April.
Other than netball the team will be at a civic reception and candle lighting ceremony today. The technical meeting of the tournament will be held tomorrow at 09:00 hrs, with the opening ceremony slated for 16:00 hrs.
In an invited comment to Stabroek Sport, secretary of the Guyana Netball Association (GNA) Lawrence Griffith stated that given the circumstances with regards preparation, the team is the best.
“We had an extensive training session which lasted for over one year which gave us the opportunity to have a longer and closer look at the players. We were slated to participate last year, but a lack of finance prevented us from doing so.”
“Where the sport is concerned, we are off a bit in comparison to the other countries such as Jamaica, St. Vincent, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados, but the girls are eager to go there and perform, as they feel that they can turn in creditable results for Guyana,” said Griffith.
“Apart from the financial constraint, we don’t have a turf to practice on whilst the tarmac at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall (CASH) is not the conducive one for netball and if we are looking to push the sport, we should have proper facilities to not only train on, but also host tournaments.”
The team will assemble at CASH at 2:00hrs this morning for departure to Cheddi Jagan International Airport. (Calvin Roberts)
