Delicia Janneire, February 17, 2025
Guyana’s Under-17 men’s football team, the Junior Jags, were unable to secure a spot in the FIFA U-17 World Cup despite a commendable performance in the Concacaf U-17 Men’s Qualifiers held in Costa Rica from February 7 to 16.
The team’s hopes were dashed after a 1-1 draw against the British Virgin Islands (BVI) in their final Group B match.
With a win against BVI, Guyana still had a slim chance of advancing to the World Cup, depending on the result of the Trinidad and Tobago vs. Costa Rica match.
However, the Junior Jags’ earlier draws with Trinidad and Tobago and Costa Rica had already put their qualification hopes on shaky ground.
In their final encounter, Guyana struggled to break the deadlock in the first half.
The situation became even more challenging when Michael Joseph was handed a red card in the 44th minute, leaving the Junior Jags with only 10 players for the remainder of the match.
Despite the setback, the Junior Jags showed remarkable resilience in the second half.
In the 53rd minute, Jaden Harris capitalized on a well-worked strike inside the box, putting Guyana ahead.
The team fought valiantly with a man down, but in injury time, Luca Stuttard of BVI scored a late equalizer to deny Guyana a victory.
The result saw Guyana finishing third in their group with six points, while Costa Rica’s win over Trinidad and Tobago, securing them 10 points, earned them the World Cup qualification spot.
Though the Junior Jags fell short of their World Cup dream, their performance in the qualifiers showed promise for the future of Guyanese football.