The Anguilla Football Association, with financial assistance from FIFA, is delighted that a 25-member Senior Men’s National Team will be representing Anguilla at two practice matches – one in Miami and the other in the Dominican Republic.
Head Coach, Stern John; AFA President, Girdon Connor; Minister Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers; AFA General Secretary, Marslyn Richardson
and Team Manager, Andre Collins
The team, comprising workers and students, left Anguilla on Friday, March 19. They, and other teams from various Caribbean islands, will be preparing for the CONCACAF/FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
Team Anguilla will have a practice match against the US Virgin Islands, which will be an international friendly game, on Sunday, March 21.
The first World Cup Qualifier game for the Anguilla National Football Team will be on Saturday, March 27. This will take place at the Inter-Miami CF Stadium against the Dominican Republic. Following that, the team will play Barbados on Tuesday, March 30, at the Estadio Olímpico Juan Felix Sanchez in Santo Domingo.
The team is expected to return to Anguilla at the end of the month and will be quarantined at the Anguilla Football Association’s suites, just north of the Football Academy.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, March 16, Minister of Sports, Ms. Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers, said: “This is something that Anguillians can look forward to especially in these times. The type of national pride it engenders is irreplaceable and invaluable…For us, as a nation, we are proud to have our coaches, players and our Football Association taking football to the next level. It is something that we will be eternally grateful for.”
President of the Anguilla Football Association, Mr. Girdon Connor, explained: “Because of the protocols for Anguilla, the Dominican Republic will be playing a game on March 24, so it is not enough time to play the game in Anguilla. As a result, we chose Miami as our home base. The second round of games will be against Panama and Dominica. Panama is our second home game so if the restrictions are relaxed by then, we will be able to host Panama in Anguilla. But those games will be in June.”
The first round of games will be played between the CONCACAF Member Associations. The thirteen men’s national teams were formed into six groups of five. Each team will play every other team in their group once, playing a total of four matches.
The Anguilla National Senior Men’s Football Team is accompanied by Stern John, Head Coach; Claudio Altieri, Strength and Conditioning Coach; Andre Collins, Team Manager; Dr. Frank Kofi, Team Doctor; Cleo Hamm, Assistant; Leon Jeffers, Equipment Manager; and Jodian Simpson, Physiotherapist.
