Interim coach Richard Forde insists that with better preparation, the Lady Tridents can bounce back from recent heavy losses and make their mark in international football.
The Senior National Women’s Football team returned to Barbados from El Salvador after a 13-0 defeat to the hosts on March 1, following a 5-0 loss to Trinidad and Tobago at Kensington Oval last December.
In an interview with Barbados TODAY Forde disclosed he had a very short window to prepare with the team.
“I was appointed two weeks before the team had to travel as the interim coach, after the Barbados Football Association reached out to me and said the current coach was unable to travel. They asked me if I could go with the team to the next game and the upcoming fixture against Honduras,” he revealed.
Forde, however, believes the experience was a valuable lesson for the Barbadian team and will serve them well in future competitions.
He said: “This team had a lot of youth players, from the Under-17 and Under-20 squads, then we had a couple of senior girls, but I think the experience was one that we can relish and can talk about, because the quality of player that we saw on this trip, was nothing like we have seen before.
“Out of the 23 member El Salvador squad, you had 21 who are seasoned professionals. So from the beginning our girls were up against it because we haven’t played as much football as we would like. If you are preparing for top level competition, the preparation has to be very rigorous and one that consists of a lot of games, so the girls can get a feeling and understanding of what it is like to play a team at this level.”
Forde, who recently led the national Under-17 Girls’ team, has called again for smoother transitions between age groups.
“I think one of the areas that we have to also pay attention to, is we have players who are moving from Under-17 directly into the senior team, and that is a very big disadvantage to these girls because I believe that they should go through the right process, from the Under-17s to Under-20 and then on to the Seniors. That is one area that we need to really look at.”
The interim coach also believes recruiting foreign-based players will be critical if Barbados is to compete against teams stacked with professionals.
“I believe that we need to look outside for players to represent the country, because our girls don’t play as much football as we would like. Then when we come up against stronger opposition, we need players who can match those players in terms of the physicality and fitness level, you know that plays a great part when you are constantly training all the time. I think that fitness must be one of the key components that we need to really look at,” he said.
Despite the heavy losses, Coach Forde is confident he can keep his team motivated moving forward.
“I can answer with a lot of confidence, because of what I saw in these girls after that game.Yes, we were defeated, but I didn’t see a daunted spirit. I saw players recognising that they need to do more, that they need to put in some more work. I saw players come to me and say coach, we now realise that there are lots of things that we really need to work on.
“I know that after the game they felt hurt. They felt bad because they know that they’re representing the country and they figured that they have let down the country, but I don’t think so. I think that we were out of our depth and I believe that we will rise again from this experience,” he added.
