3 days ago
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Despite a crushing 21-1 defeat to global powerhouse Canada in the quarterfinals of the World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championships, Jamaica’s head coach, Mark Wilson, said he is proud of the progress made by the national programme
Jamaica achieved a new milestone at the age-group lacrosse global tournament when they progressed to the final eight for the first time in the island’s history.
Wilson took the time to thank the various stakeholders on achieving the milestone, which he said was the product of years of hard work.
“I’m just really proud of everyone’s efforts,” he said.
“From the Jamaica Lacrosse Association (JLA) helping us get the resources to even make this happen [and] the coaching staff volunteering their time to train the team and helping them to be this competitive.”
Wilson continued, “Of course, to all the players as well who really put in a lot of hard work and dedication in the training sessions to get here and actually execute on the field.”
However, their celebrations would come to a quick end as they were dominated by 2022 beaten finalists Canada in commanding fashion.
The Canadians took charge of the match from the opening whistle, racing to a 3-1 lead in the opening quarter.
They increased the pressure in the remaining three quarters, brushing aside the Jamaican contingent in identical 6-0 scores to run out 21-1 victors.
Elias Shadeed-McLaughlin scored Jamaica’s only point of the game, and Brendan Marino and Luke Robinson were Canada top scorers with three points each.
The result means that Canada have advanced to the semi-finals, where they will face off against Australia, and Jamaica are set to take on Japan in a playoff match for final placements.
SIGNS FOR THE FUTURE
Wilson believes that the team has made major improvements in reaching the quarterfinals, one step further than they did in 2022, where they lost in the play-in rounds.
The head coach praised the success of the high school lacrosse programmes in Jamaica, which he said had boosted the sport’s profile in the island.
This, he explained, has allowed the national teams to choose from a pool of local and international-based players.
“What is significant to me about this team is that obviously, one of the things that has made Jamaica lacrosse special was that it was born in the high-school programmes. That was the genesis of Jamaica lacrosse,” he said.
“Our national teams have been successful because of not only our local players but also the fact that we have such a great Jamaican diaspora that exists within the world of lacrosse that gives us such a great pool of players to select from.”
The current roster contains four players who began their lacrosse careers on the island, including Jehvoun Byfield, Sanjay Tomlinson, Demario Barham, and D’Andrae McKenzie.
Wilson said this gives him hope for the future that Jamaica can continue to develop lacrosse players who are able to compete at the global level.
“These are guys that learnt how to play lacrosse in Kingston, and two of them are playing in college in the United States now, and one is going next year,” he said.
“Every single one of those guys has been on the field and has been a big factor in what we have accomplished. So this team is really representative of what Jamaica lacrosse is all about.
“I believe that this is just a continuation of everyone’s hard work and showing the way of where we can be in the future.”
English (US) ·