Guyana’s women’s football programme is set to kick-off in June with a national team scheduled to participate in a four-team tournament hosted by the Turks & Caicos Football Federation.
According to a release from President of the Guyana Sports Development Foundation Colin Baker, the team will comprise girls playing football at various universities, colleges and clubs in the USA and Canada.
The team has been put together by Mark Rodrigues who is the Women’s Development Officer of the Guyana Football Federation. He holds many coaching certifications in North America, including national licenses in both countries.
He also has extensive experience as a women’s coach with various teams in North America, both at the collegiate and club levels.
Rodrigues has voluntarily agreed to kick start the programme by identifying women who are competitively playing in North America, and who by birth or parentage are eligible to represent Guyana.
It is the hope that this programme would help fast-track Guyana’s women’s programme for regional tournaments and he will work along with local officials and players to create a very competitive Guyana team for participation in the next Women’s World Cup qualifiers.
Vanessa Dickenson, Head of Women’s Football in Guyana and at least four local players are expected to join the team.
The release also stated that the overseas players and staff are all paying their own airfares to participate in the tournament and would welcome any sponsorship to help defray additional expenses.
