Connie looks to young talent
As Sunshine Girls head coach Connie Francis continues her rebuilding of the senior netball team, her intention is to also help transition some of the current under-21 players into the senior team framework.
The former national player has so far identified six players from the group she thinks are good enough to be part of the senior set-up.
“I am always looking forward to have some fresh blood in our (senior) squad, so we mix it with the U21s that are looking forward to the (U21) World Youth Cup (Fiji) next year. The youths are our future and it’s not about one team, it’s about netball in Jamaica, so every time we get an opportunity to go out we want to send the best and also expose the young ones. They are the future and I want to see more of them get an opportunity to come forward and make our team,” she said.
She noted that former Gaynstead High School standout defender, Latanya Wilson, is leading the way in that regard for her U21 peers. “There are about six of them who have the ability to make the senior team. Latanya (Wilson) is already a very good player and the sky’s the limit for her. She is playing in England and is also looking to keep her place on the
National defender Damion Lowe recalls the scoring against Honduras in their Gold Cup 2019 Group C game at the National Stadium last June as a moment that was written in the stars.
The 27-year-old was speaking during last Thursday’s Gleaner Instagram Live, interview where he discussed his club’s future, his stint at Norwegian Club IK Start, Reggae Boyz World Cup 2022 qualification chances, as well as his evolution as a player.
INTERNATIONAL RETIREMENT
Lowe told STAR Sports that his Gold Cup goal was memorable for him not just because he scored in front of his home supporters, but because of his family’s connection to the team and the opponent. His father, Onandi, played for the Reggae Boyz, helping to qualify the nation for the 1998 FIFA World Cup.
Honduras was the last team that he scored against before international retirement. Lowe said that being constantly around his father’s national team. She has been doing the work and she is getting the results, so she can get the position. But I really want to bring in some newer players and I would like to give all the players their opportunity,” she stated.
She added that the suspension of domestic competitions has affected the young, progressing players adversely, and she is hoping for a speedy restart to local competitions.
“We have the club leagues, the elite league and school league, so there were various competitions that we were involved in. So it (COVID-19) has hindered netball on a whole. I was looking to see the elite league because that is where you see the talent come through, but we just have to move on.
“We are taking it one step at a time, but for all those who didn’t get an opportunity to play (this year) it has dampened their spirits, especially in the club leagues, because we have a lot of young players in the junior and JNA leagues looking to continue their development. So as soon as Government gives us the clearance we hope to be back out on the court,” she added. teammates as a youngster made him a Reggae Boy from the start.
“I feel like if it was to happen to any other player, they wouldn’t feel it as much. Because [of] my father and the connection to the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), I feel like I was a national player since I was young because I knew all the players,” he said. They used to come to my house, hang out, everything. I used to go to the player’s house [and] go to JFF office since I was a child.”
Already ahead 2-1, Lowe’s bullet-like header sent the crowd into a frenzy as the Reggae Boyz scored their third goal of the night. He described the moment as poetic as his father watched from the stands.
“Watching my father in the national stadium, scoring; Me now growing up being able to play for the national team, and then my father was in the stadium, and then me scoring on the team he last scored against for the national team, it was pure joy,” he said. “It had to happen because the game I was having was a monstrous game. I felt like that game, nothing could go wrong.”
Jamaica would win the match 3-2 and would advance from the Group, where they would reach the semi-finals of the Gold Cup for the third consecutive tournament.