The Barbados senior women’s national football team will compete against familiar opponents St Vincent & the Grenadines, Dominican Republic and Bermuda in their 2023 Road the CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup campaign.
The Lady Tridents, as they are affectionately known, were drawn in Group B of League C in an official draw hosted by sports anchor Carmen Boquin which included Concacaf President and FIFA Vice President Victor Montaglian, as well as Maylee Atthin-Johnson and Wendy Acosta from Trinidad and Costa Rica, respectively.
Reacting to the draw, national coach Mario Harte said: “Honestly, I am happy with it (the draw). I think it is the best that we could have hoped for. Not saying that we are afraid of the Central American teams, but the atmosphere in those countries with the crowds really get behind their teams. The other teams in the group are ranked higher than us, but I honestly believe we can get some wins, especially at home, as long as we have the support.”
The inaugural competition begins in September after the conclusion of the FIFA Women’s World Cup which ends on August 20, and includes 35 CONCACAF women’s national teams. Those sides were split into three leagues according to their CONCACAF Women’s ranking as of March 2023 and then subdivided into groups.
The matches will be played during the official FIFA match windows in September, October and November 2023, the group winners in each of the League A groups (three teams) will qualify for the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup Group Stage.
The first-place finishers in each of the League B groups (three teams) will advance to the 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup Prelims.
League B
Group A: Guyana, Antigua and Barbuda, Suriname, and Dominica.
Group B: El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, and Martinique.
Group C: Dominican Republic, Bermuda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Barbados. (JC/PR)
