West Indies Women head coach Courtney Walsh is confident ahead of their 2022 ICC Women’s World Cup semi-final against Australia in Wellington on Tuesday.

Speaking in an interview with Andrew Mason, Walsh, who was appointed as head coach in October 2020 after previously serving as assistant coach to Gus Logie, expressed his confidence and outlined that while the team has played well in stages, they still haven’t put it all together.

“I’m very confident. I think the team deserves to be in the semis. We’ve played some very good cricket while we’ve been here and we still haven’t put it together as a team like we know we can do so this will be the right game to get that started so I’m pretty confident that once we execute and play to our potential, we’ll have a very good game,” he said.

The West Indies got a few days rest after their last game against South Africa last Wednesday, something Walsh says has done the team well.

“We had a couple days away from it which has done us some good. It’s the first break we’ve had since the start of the competition so we had a couple of days where some of the main players were not required to come to practice to give them a chance to recover and the girls who weren’t playing much cricket had a chance to come out and get some decent practice as well. We’re in a good space at the moment,” he said.

“There’s no major concern. We know the areas that we haven’t done well in and the coaches have been trying very hard to get everybody up to speed,” was Walsh’s response when asked about any concerns he had going into the semi-final.

The West Indies will be aiming to advance to their second Women's World Cup final after finishing as runners-up in 2013 in India.

West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor wants her team to relish the moment ahead of their World Cup semi-final against Australia on Tuesday.

“We want to relish the moment and go out there and play hard cricket,” the all-rounder said in a pre-match press conference on Monday.

The match will be played in Wellington where the West Indies have been awaiting their fate since their last group match against South Africa was rained out last Wednesday.

“We’ve been here for a while now. We’ve been getting used to conditions in the nets so hopefully that should help us in how we play. We just have to take it how it comes and play like a final and, hopefully, we come out on top,” she said.

There was a time not too long ago when a World Cup semi-final seemed like an unreachable dream for the Caribbean side but Taylor says changes over the last couple years have helped the team grow.

“We’ve had some changes to our team and a new coaching staff. I believe the work they’ve been doing with us has changed the way we go about our game,” she said.

“I think we have come a long way. It may not show as much with the score sheet but I feel like we’ve come a long way looking back on series we’ve played. The coaching staff has contributed so much to where we are. I thought we had a really good start to the tournament and hopefully that’s something we could use to get us through in this back-end. Everyone is fit and rearing to go,” Taylor added.

The West Indies will be looking to reach their second World Cup final after being runners up in 2013, losing the final to Australia by 114 runs.

Former Merlene Ottey High School sprinter Akeem Blake and Bahamian Olympian Anthonique Strachan stole the show at the 2022 staging of the John Wolmer Speed Fest at the National Stadium on Saturday.

Blake sped to 10.13 to win the Men’s 100m, a new personal best, ahead of former national champion Oshane Bailey (10.18) and 400m specialist and former Petersfield High standout Antonio Watson (10.21).

Just last week in Florida, Blake ran a then-personal best 10.17 to finish second in the Men's 100m at the Hurricane Invitational.

Strachan dipped below the 11-second barrier for the first time in her career, running 10.99 to win the Women’s 100m ahead of Shashalee Forbes (11.24) and Jodean Williams (11.54).

400m Hurdles semi-finalist at the Tokyo Olympics Jaheel Hyde ran a big personal best to win the Men’s 400m. The former Wolmer’s man clocked 45.78 to win ahead of Anthony Cox (46.09) and Keeno Burrell (47.65).

2011 World 100m champion Yohan Blake looked impressive, easing down before crossing the finish line in 20.95 to win his 200m heat. Also looking impressive in the Men's 200m was former STETHS man Nigel Ellis who won his section in 20.43.

Double Olympic sprint champion Elaine Thompson-Herah opened her outdoor season with a third-place finish in the Women’s 400m. She ran 56.72 to finish behind the 2019 World Championships 400m hurdles bronze medallist Rushell Clayton (54.41) and Gabrielle Matthews of the Queen's School (56.42).

West Indies all-rounder Hayley Matthews says all the pressure is on Australia ahead of their ICC Women’s World Cup semi-final clash in Wellington on Tuesday.

Saturday’s final day of the 2022 Texas Relays at the Mike A. Myers Stadium saw a number of Caribbean athletes put in impressive performances to kick off the NCAA outdoor season.

Jamaica’s Kevona Davis and St. Lucia’s Julien Alfred were both members of a  University of Texas quartet who were victorious in both the 4x100 and 4x200m relays. The Longhorns ran 42.83 to win the 4x100m ahead of LSU (42.97) and Texas Tech (43.11) then returned to run 1:29.03 to be the overall winners of the 4x200m ahead of Star Athletic (1:30.55) and Hurdle Mechanics (1:30.65).

Two former Class One 800m champions at Jamaica’s ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Championships, Kimar Farquharson formerly of Calabar High and Chevonne Hall formerly of Edwin Allen, were members of a victorious South Plains College team in the Men’s 4x800m. South Plains ran 7:20.31 to win ahead of Texas A&M (7:24.03) and Arkansas (7:26.84).

Former Excelsior High star Ackera Nugent was in fine form for Baylor University, running 12.72 to finish third in the Women’s 100m Hurdles.

2021 Jamaica Olympian and former STETHS student Stacey Ann Williams helped Texas run 3:22.94 to win the Women’s 4x400m to close out the meet.

Former Hydel High standout Lamara Distin, now competing for Texas A&M, produced a personal best and Jamaican national record 1.96m to win the Women’s High Jump at the Texas Relays at the Mike A. Myers Stadium on Saturday.

This lifetime best continues a phenomenal start to the season for Distin who jumped a national indoor record 1.92 to win at the NCAA Indoor Championships in in Birmingham, Alabama earlier this month.

1.96m is a school record, the fifth best collegiate jump of all time and also sees Distin achieve the World Championships qualifying standard.

Jonathan Jones from Barbados and Shafiqua Maloney from St. Vincent & the Grenadines were both victorious at Thursday’s second day of the 2022 Texas Relays at the Mike A. Myers Stadium.

The 23-year-old Jones, competing for the University of Texas, ran a personal best and Barbadian national record 1:45.83 to win the Men’s Invitational 800m ahead of Moad Zahavi of Texas Tech (1:46.02) and his Texas teammate Crayton Carrozza (1:46.89).

Maloney won the Women’s equivalent in 2:04.59 ahead of Brooke Jaworski of Texas (2:04.90) and Grand Canyon’s Kelly Moodry (2:05.64).

On Friday, Jamaica’s Charokee Young was a member of the Texas A&M quartet that ran 3:38.93 to win the Women’s Sprint Medley. Former Edwin Allen star Kevona Davis ran a leg for Texas who finished second in 3:38.95 while Texas Tech finished third in 3:45.71.

STETHS alumni and 2021 Olympian Stacey Ann Williams helped Texas advance to the Women’s 4x400m final as the second fastest qualifiers. Their time of 3:32.60 was only bettered by Arkansas with 3:31.87. The final is scheduled for Saturday.

Andre Russell and Sunil Narine both had solid outings with the ball to help the Kolkata Knight Riders secure a six wicket win over defending champions Chennai Super Kings to kick off the 2022 Tata Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.

The Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field first, a decision which was proven right early as the Super Kings lost openers Ruturaj Gaikwad (0) and Devon Conway (3) in quick succession.

Despite a fighting 50 not out from former captain MS Dhoni, Chennai could only muster up 131-5 off their 20 overs.

Umesh Yadav bowled a fiery spell to finish with 2-20 from his four overs.

Narine went wicketless in his four overs while only conceding 15 runs and Russell took 1-38 from his four overs.

KKR then got through their chase with little resistance thanks to a top score of 44 from Ajinkya Rahane and solid contributions from Sam Billings (25) and Nitish Rana (21).

Captain Shreyas Iyer (20) and Sheldon Jackson (3) were at the crease when KKR got to 133-4 with nine balls to spare.

Despite the loss, Dwayne Bravo was excellent with the ball taking 3-20 from his four overs and, in the process, joining Sri Lankan great Lasith Malinga at the top of the all-time IPL leading wicket-takers list with 170.

Trinidad and Tobago’s Soca Warriors hammered Barbados 9-0 in an International Friendly at the Hasely Crawford Stadium on Friday.

AEK Athens winger Levi Garcia got a hat-trick with goals in the 27^th, 35^th and 40^th minutes. Ryan Telfer (29^th, 60^th) and Nicholas Dillon (68^th, 78^th) both got doubles while the other goals came from Reon Moore in the 80^th minute and John-Paul Rochford in the 83^rd.

This was the Soca Warriors first win since a 6-1 triumph over Montserrat in a CONCACAF Gold Cup qualifier in Fort Lauderdale in July 2021.

The game was the opener of the Courts Caribbean Classic contested between Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and Guyana from March 25-29.

The action continues on Sunday when Barbados oppose Guyana and ends on Tuesday with Trinidad and Tobago playing Guyana.

All matches will be played at the Hasely Crawford Stadium.

Reggae Boyz head coach Paul Hall has made it clear that if players in the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) are deemed good enough, they will be given opportunities in the national side.

He made his comments in a post-match interview after his side played out a 1-1 draw with El Salvador in a World Cup Qualifier at the National Stadium on Thursday.

Locally-based players such as Cavalier’s Richard King, Mount Pleasant’s Daniel Green, Dunbeholden’s Atapharoy Bygrave and Waterhouse’s Ramone Howell all saw action against El Salvador and there were others among the substitutes. Hall says there is a reason they are all in the mix.

“The reason why they were in the squad is because I rate them highly,” Hall said before going on to issue a warning to overseas based players who declined the opportunity to represent the team.

“I’ve watched every premier league game this weekend and I’ve seen some really good players and it’s just a message to people that if they’re not willing to come and be a part of us, there are players in there waiting to take their places, they just need the opportunity,” he said.

There has long been a call to give more local-based players an opportunity in international football and it seems Hall is set on making that happen.

“I said to the lads that this is about opportunity. If I give somebody an opportunity, I expect them to take it to keep somebody else out of the team. That’s what it’s all about,” he said.

Reggae Boyz head coach Paul Hall has praised his team’s performance in their 1-1 draw at home against El Salvador in their CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying fixture at the National Stadium on Thursday.

Speaking after the game, Hall said his message to the team prior to the game was simple.

“I asked them to play with style. I asked them to play with a smile on their face,” he said.

They definitely heard his message, creating numerous chances with free-flowing football throughout the 90 minutes.

“They played with the ball like nobody’s business. There were triangles popping up all over the place and everybody was brave to take the ball so we’ve got to now build on that,” Hall said.

They’ll have an opportunity to build on it when they oppose Canada on Sunday before returning home to host Honduras on March 30^th and Hall spoke on what he wants to see from his team in the remaining matches.

“Performance. That’s what we’re looking for. That’s all I ask the players for. I don’t ask for a win, I don’t ask them for a draw, all I say is perform because results will look after themselves,” he said.

“I just want them to play in a style that is befitting of a Jamaican team. We’re physically stronger than everybody else, we run faster than everybody else, we just need a little bit of style to our play and to make sure we’re good at the basics, then we can really fly,” Hall added.

Jamaica winger Leon Bailey is suggesting that Jamaica's failed world cup campaign was partly due to players in the squad who lacked the required attitude and approach.

The Aston Villa player made the suggestions while speaking with Sportsmax following Jamaica's 1-1 draw with El Salvador at the National Stadium on Thursday night in what was one of Reggae Boyz more encouraging performances of the campaign. After falling behind in the 21st minute, Jamaica rallied to equalize in the 72nd minute and had several opportunities to win the game.

Head coach Paul Hall included several local players in the squad and Bailey believes that those players exhibited the kind of attitude that was far different to that of other players who were not available for the match.

“There was too much ego in the team and I’m happy that things have been changed a little bit," said Bailey.

"We have guys who want to listen and learn and go forward. We had too many hotheads in the team, too many players who don’t like to listen. Everybody has to want to listen. Nobody’s bigger than the game.” 

Jamaica failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar but Bailey says the performance against El Salvador has provided a template of how the team can move forward.

“We haven’t made it to the World Cup but tonight showed that we are a good team. We can play football and compete. I feel like we can build on this going forward. We showed a lot of character and eagerness to learn,” he said.

Reggae Boyz attacker Leon Bailey says he feels sharp after playing all 90 minutes of the team’s 1-1 draw in their World Cup Qualifier against El Salvador at the National Stadium in Kingston on Thursday.

The visitors took the lead in the 21^st minute through an Eriq Zavaleta header off a corner before the Reggae Boyz equalized in the 72^nd minute through Queens Park Rangers striker Andre Gray.

“I enjoyed the game today. I think the team enjoyed the game today and it was exciting for the fans. I thought we were brilliant in defense and attack but we didn’t take the chances,” Bailey said in an interview with SportsMax after the game.

“I felt good. Haven’t played 90 minutes in a long time. There’s much more room for improvement but I feel sharp, comfortable and ready to go,” he added.

A long time is right. The Aston Villa man hadn’t played the full 90 minutes of a game since a Premier League fixture against Southampton on November 5^th.

He endured a long spell on the side-lines after suffering a muscle injury against Manchester City in December.

Jamaica have two more games in the span of five days and Bailey says he’s unsure how much of a part he’ll be able to play in those.

“I’m not sure what the plan is. I’ll speak to coach and see but, obviously, as I said, I haven’t played a full 90 minutes in a long time and having three games in such a short time, we’ll have to see how much minutes I’ll be able to play in the other two games or maybe I’ll just play one game. We don’t know,” he said.

The Reggae Boyz will next take on Canada on Sunday before ending their World Cup Qualifying campaign against Honduras at the National Stadium on March 30^th.

Reggae Boyz head coach Paul Hall says he is looking to the future ahead of their CONCACAF World Cup qualifying fixture against El Salvador at the National Stadium in Kingston on Thursday.

Hall says the fact that Jamaica is out of contention for qualification ahead of the final round of matches gives them that opportunity.

“It’s a squad that’s got a new look about it. It’s got a younger, fresher feel about it and the reason that I’ve picked the squad like this is the succession plan. We have to look at the future,” he said.

The squad includes players like Christopher Pearson and Tarick Ximines, who participated in schoolboy football this season for Kingston College and Jamaica College, respectively.

“We have to look at youngsters who will be here in a few years’ time. We have to build and grow and part of the strategy is to bring some of those young, outstanding schoolboys, under-23 and under-24 players and really look to grow with them and set a foundation for the future,” Hall said.

Jamaica has had no success at home so far in this qualification campaign, a fact that Hall says his team will be looking to change when they face El Salvador on Thursday and then Honduras next Wednesday, March 30, with a trip to Canada sandwiched between.

“Every game that we play we try to win. It’s important that we finish off these games on a positive note. Yes, it’s important to get a win but it’s also important to use these games as a platform to get to succession plans for the future,” he said.

The Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Hon. Olivia Grange says the Government is rewarding $55 million to athletes, coaches, and officials who participated in the recent Summer and Winter Olympic Games and the Paralympics.

“Jamaica is joining other countries which reward those who represent them at the Olympics with honorariums,” Minister Grange said while speaking at the official launch of the 2022 ISSA GraceKennedy Boys and Girls Championships at the National Stadium on Monday.

“Appreciation Grants will be for those representing Jamaica at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the Paralympics, and the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. The level of awards was determined based on individual placement, from gold medal winner to non-finalist, coaches, and other supporting staff. Ninety-three persons will be rewarded, valued at approximately $55M,” she added.

She then broke down how the money would be divided.

“The honorariums are $1.65 million for each gold medal won; $1.35 million for each silver medal won and $800,000.00 for each bronze medal won. The honorarium is $850,000 for the relay gold. Finalists are receiving $600,000.00; relay finalists, $500,000; and non-finalists, $350,000. Coaches and massage therapists are getting $350,000 while team managers and doctors are getting $200,000,” Grange explained.