The Young Reggae Boyz will depart the island on Tuesday for Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where they will take part in two more games leading to the end of their preparations for the CONCACAF men's Under-20 Championships in Trinidad and Tobago, beginning on March 6.
The games and training sessions will take place at Lauderhill Sports Complex in Lauderhill, Florida. The team will play its first game on Wednesday, February 25, at 8 p.m. against the Caribbean Americas Soccer Association (CASA) Under-23 team.
Second game
Their second game will be against Canada's Under-20 team at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, February 27. Canada will also be putting the finishing touches on their preparation for the tournament.
The games will continue the rigorous preparation for the Boyz, after hosting Costa Rica for two matches and Mexico for one. The team drew the first match against Costa Rica 0-0 and lost the second 1-0, but came back with a victory over the Mexicans. They will look to build on the last victory as the squad is whittled down for this trip.
The Jamaicans were drawn in Group A alongside the United States of America, El Salvador and the winners of the play-off between Honduras and St Vincent and the Grenadines, for the upcoming tournament.
These four Group A teams will compete in a round-robin series at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Tobago from March 6-15. The top two teams from the group will advance to the semi-final round, which effectively will seal their place in the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Egypt, 2009, which runs from September 25 to October 16.
The four teams drawn to compete in Group B are Mexico, Costa Rica, Canada and hosts Trinidad and Tobago.
The Young Boyz are looking to join hosts Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon and South Africa from Africa; Germany, England, Spain, Italy, Hungary and the Czech Republic from Europe; Australia, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Korea Republic from Asia; Tahiti from Oceania; and Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil and Venezuela from South America, as teams to qualify for the tournament.
Jamaica qualified for the 2001 Under-20 World Cup in Argentina and continue the pursuit of their second berth at this level.
Squad: Goalkeepers - Gariece McPherson (Portmore United), Andre Blake (Clarendon College, Sporting Central Academy); Defenders- Leaunghn Williams (Lennon High, Sporting Central Academy), Andre Darby (Portmore United), Keithy Simpson (Sporting Central Academy), Damaine Thompson (Ruseas High, Bamboo FC), Andrae Campbell (Portmore United), Christopher Banner (Sporting Central Academy). Midfielders - Evan Taylor (Reno FC), Davion Thorpe (Reno FC), John-Ross Doyley (Glenmuir High, Portmore United), Kaydian Wynter (Sporting Central Academy), Romario Campbell (Harbour View FC), Andre Steele (Bridgeport High, Harbour View FC). Forwards - Shamar Shelton (St George's College, Harbour View FC), Andre Clennon (Waterhouse FC), Dever Orgill (Vancouver Whitecaps), Alonzo Adlam (Sporting Central Academy).