The Tribune

THE Bahamas Football Association has released the names of the players selected to represent the Bahamas at the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football 2018 CONCACAF Girls' Under-15 Championship.

The tournament, scheduled for August 6-13 at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, will be the largest ever for female participants and will feature a record number of CONCACAF Member Associations as well as two invited teams from UEFA.

Team Bahamas, managed by Daria Adderley and coached by Kevin Davies, will comprise of the following players: Shabrea Davis, Kendi Outten, Chante Bain, Takiyah Holbert, Kaitlyn Davies, Angel Williams, Charlotte Fernie, Gabrielle Simms, Julia Raine, Paige Smith, Chane Rodriquez, Hadassah Knowles, Amelia Fernie, Rachel Rolle, Brianna Capron, Janeka Edy, Asia Williams and Damielle Gomez. Gabrielle Simms, Takiyah Holbert and Kendi Outten are from Grand Bahama.

"After months of training, the girls have come a long way since we started," coach Davies said. "I have some very high expectations for the girls from what I've seen so far. I think we should make a very good showing. I don't know anything about the other teams, so I don't like to make predictions of sort. But based on what I see with the girls that I have, I think the expectations is based on what I know the girls are capable of doing."

The tournament, held every two years, will be the third time for the Bahamas to participate and with teams like the United States and Mexico in the field, Davies said the Bahamas should be able to match up with their peers.

"If it comes down to execution at the end of the day, I don't think that their talent is that much better than us, if better at all," he insisted. "I think it will just boil down to who executes the best on that day and makes the least amount of mistakes."

The Bahamas has been placed in Group E of Division II, which comprises of the Cayman Islands, St Lucia and Guyana. There are four groups in Division II, which will all play for the top spot. However, in division one, there are three groups of four teams that will play for four spots in the playoffs.

Team Bahamas will work out on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from six to 7:30 pm and eight to 9:30am on Saturday before they leave town on August 4 and return on August 11. They will play their first game in the tournament at 11am on August 6 against the Cayman Islands and St Lucia at the same time on August 7. After a day's rest on August 8, the team will return to action on August 9 against Guyana at 11am.

CONCACAF returns to IMG following a successful Boys' Under-15 Championship held there last year, which featured a record 39 teams from across the Confederation. This will mark the third time this CONCACAF competition has been held for U-15 girls. The USA did not participate in the first tournament in 2014, but with many of the players currently with the U-17 Women's National Team attempting to qualify for the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, won the competition in 2016 in Orlando.

The USA took all seven games at that tournament by shutout while compiling a 49-0 goal difference. The USA defeated Costa Rica 5-0 in the semi-final and Canada 2-0 in the championship game to take the regional title.

"This year's Girls' Under-15 Championship exemplifies CONCACAF's commitment to providing access to world-class playing environments for more of our young players from across the region," said CONCACAF general secretary Philippe Moggio.

"We're pleased to return to IMG Academy, and we're especially excited to see so many young women from across the region get the chance to experience a top-level CONCACAF competition. This event will be a positive influence for these girls in both their playing careers and young lives."

As part of a big year of women's soccer in CONCACAF that includes the CONCACAF Women's Championship and the Women's Under-17 and Under-20 Championship, the expanded Girls' Under-15 Championship will provide access to international football for over 500 girls from across the CONCACAF region, enhancing opportunity for long-term development and growth of the women's game in the region.

In total, nearly 2,000 female athletes will participate in CONCACAF championships this year across the region. Centralised tournaments such as the Girls' Under-15 Championship and regional qualifying tournaments in the Caribbean and Central America are providing more football for more of CONCACAF's women's teams across all levels, assuring that the region's women are well-served through the One CONCACAF philosophy of access to quality football for more CONCACAF athletes.

The participating member associations, groups, schedule and format of the tournament will be announced in the near future. To ensure sporting balance and fully leverage this unique development opportunity for the full contingent of young CONCACAF and invited players, member associations will be divided into divisions. All will be guaranteed a minimum number of competitive matches during the week-long competition.