MCALLEN, USA — Things just keep getting better for Jamaica’s senior Reggae Girl Toriana Patterson.

The central defender would have seen and heard numerous tales of how many female stars conquered obstacles on the way to their rise to the top, and she is currently charting a similar course.

Having previously paraded her skills for FK Gintra in Lithuania, Patterson is making an even more significant stride in her professional career as she will be returning to the glossy European stage, this time in Italy.

The 24-year-old recently forged an eight-month contract with FC Pink Bari in the Women’s Serie A and believes the opportunity could not have come at a better time.

“I am very excited to play in Italy… it is always great when you realise a goal, knowing that your hard work is paying off, and so I just try to stay as focused as I can and try to stay consistent. The Serie A is a really good league and they take things really seriously there, so I am really looking forward to the remainder of the season there,” Patterson told the Jamaica Observer.

“Interestingly, I actually took Italian as my second language in middle school and high school, so speaking Italian fluently is slowly coming back, and it has been a while since I last visited the country, so it is really good to be back in Italy just because I love the culture and all,” she said.

Patterson will join Reggae Girl teammate Trudi Carter, who recently signed, with AS Roma in the league and she is anticipating some intense competition when the two teams meet later this year.

“I am really excited… I wish for myself only good things and I am excited to have the opportunity to play soccer in Italy. I have been there for two weeks, since mid-September, and the practices have been very intense and organised and I really love that.

“So I am looking forward to a fun and competitive season, even more so with Trudi [Carter], I think we play each other in December because she comes to us first, so it is going to be cool and hopefully we get to hang out as well,” she shared.

Despite her excitement, Patterson, who made her first appearance in a national team when she represented the country at the 2014 Concacaf Under-20 Championship, is taking aim at a higher goal.

Standing at 5ft 7in tall, Patterson is on the hunt for more success with the senior Reggae Girlz team.

The Hue Menzies side is currently here for the Concacaf Women’s Championships, which serves as a qualifier to the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France.

They are set to contest Group B along with Canada, Costa Rica and Caribbean neighbours Cuba at H.E.B Park in Edinburg, Texas.

The top three teams in the tournament will automatically qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019, with the fourth-placed team having an opportunity to secure qualification through a play-off with Argentina from CONMEBOL.

“Obviously the main picture is to get to the World Cup, but individually and as a team we just want to get better every day in all aspects of the game. We are all very confident in ourselves, in each other and the group that we got, and we are really excited and ready for this opportunity,” reasoned Patterson, a University of Connecticut alumna.

While most of what she has done got lost in the limelight of her attack-minded teammates, Patterson, whose parents Christopher and Raquel Shakes Patterson are both Jamaicans, is willing to go beyond her call of duty on the field to ensure that team has a successful tournament.

“For me it is just to see myself and my teammates succeed. I want to grow as a soccer player, so the aim is to get better every day,” she ended.

– Sherdon Cowan