Since its inception football has been dominated by male folk. It was only recently that women started to carve a niche for themselves in the sport. It is more like women are playing catch up but remarkable progress has been made. It has been a lot faster for women in the first world countries but in the Caribbean and other developing countries it has not been so easy.
Regardless of these facts and the odds against them the Jamaican Reggae Girls just made history in the footballing world. This record was set on October 17 and it makes them not just the first Jamaican female team to make it to the FIFA organized competition but the first Caribbean female team to do so.
The team which is currently ranked 64th on the FIFA rankings for female teams needed to win in either the semifinals or finals of the CONCACAF Women’s Championship for 2018. Any of the winners are expected to join other teams in France next year for the Women’s World Cup.
The team coach Hue Menzies had this to say, “We’ve got to persevere, get through these adversities,” Menzies said. “That’s the mentality these kids have. Their environment creates that. Where they were brought up gives them a little bit of an edge.”
There were several challenges on the way to reaching the final four in the CONCACAF competition but perseverance and determination to set a new record helped them pull through. This history making victory puts them right amongst the greatest sports teams to be produced by Jamaica. The Prime Minister of Jamaica expressed his joy and gratitude to the team for the great feat achieved.
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