Busby taking positives from Girlz’s 4-0 loss to Brazil
REGGAE Girlz Head Coach Hubert Busby is optimistic despite a 4-0 loss to Brazil in an international friendly match on Saturday.
Two second-half goals from superstar Marta led world number 10-ranked Brazil against a Reggae Girlz team that Busby said is still trying to rediscover their chemistry.
The Girlz trailed 2-0 at half-time with goals from Adriana in the 26th minute and an own goal from Chantelle Swaby in the 38th minute, and the hosts dominated in front of a crowd of over 30,000 in Recife. Marta then scored two second-half goals to finish the routing as Brazil outshot Jamaica 26-2 and had 71 per cent of possession. Jamaica registered no shots on target.
“I think, obviously, [we’re] disappointed in the result — [it could] never [be] what we want [as] we always come out here to win football matches,” Busby said after the game. “But I think, upon reflection, when you think about where we’ve come from — especially getting a lot of the core players who have not played together nine months together — the preparation was good.
“I think we’ve had a very good couple of days of training in terms of trying to implement some new things[but], unfortunately, they didn’t all come off today. And I think…overall, where the disappointment lies is in some of the little things that I thought we pride ourselves in and the ability to hold up the ball and come out a little bit more.”
The inability, he said, to do some of what they practised was one of the letdowns, but Busby said his “team’s shape wasn’t actually bad” and said the game plan was “really keeping it tight the first 15 minutes and then the next 15 minutes trying to come out and play a bit more”.
But, Busby said, “When mental mistakes led to the first two goals, it’s never a good recipe to try to claw your way back into the game. So overall, like I said, from a realistic standpoint there’s going to be some bumps in the road and some learning that needs to take place, also some assimilation in terms of players getting back and understanding how each other plays — which hasn’t been something they’ve been accustomed to in nine months so it will take some time. We will regroup and build on what we can build on.”
