REGGAE Girlz Yollanda Robinson says her main goal is to debut for Jamaica’s senior team in their pursuit of qualifying for the 2015 Women’s World Cup in Canada.

“This is my first call-up to train with the national team and I want to do well. I really want to work hard in football because I want to make the national team, plus to make sure that I am in the starting 11, and that is what I am aiming for,” Robinson told the Sunday Observer.

Robinson, who is the goalkeeper for Harbour View, knows very well that success will only come with hard work.

“I know that it will take a lot hard work and dedication, but that is what I am doing right now. I am also aware that I will have to put in the extra hard work and commitment if I want to get picked for the team,” she said.

The 20-year-old Robinson, who is currently doing a degree in Family and Consumer Science at the Micro University College, noted that she also has her sights set on playing professionally aboard.

“Apart from playing for the national team and local clubs, I want to go overseas to play football as well; I want the exposure and the experience. The more exposure I get, the more I can develop into a better goalkeeper,” she said.

Looking back, Robinson recalls that she started playing football from a young age, but only took in the sport competitively while attending St Jago High School.

“When I was small, I used to go to the football field in the evenings with my cousins to watch the guys play, and after they were finished, we would play against each other and I was always in the goal and that’s how I developed a liking for the sport and the position.

“But one day at St Jago High School, Calvin Walsh came to me and said that they wanted a goalkeeper for the team, and that was after he saw me keeping while playing with some friends. After that, I took the game more seriously, and the rest is history,” she said with a smile.

Robinson said that training can be difficult at times, but the love for the game is what keeps her going.

“As a goalkeeper, you have to get everything right. You have to be accurate, positions have to be perfect and everything must click together, because one mistake and the ball can end up in the back of the net. This is the most important position on the field and so we get the hardest training to do,” she said.

Robinson, who also plays netball, said that her parents are the main reasons for her accomplishment.

“My mother Annmarie Robinson and father Dwayne Robinson are always there to support me. There were times when I wanted to give up, but they were there to encourage me, they are the most influential persons in my life,” she beamed.