Despite winning major local and regional titles, interim Head Coach Rudolph Speid faces his biggest task on Thursday as he aims to push the Reggae Boyz a step closer to the FIFA World Cup from June to July. He’s hoping that a unified effort will lead them to their ultimate objective, regardless of the challenges ahead.

The national senior men’s team will conduct their final training session today in Guadalajara ahead of their inter-continental play-off semi-final against New Caledonia on Thursday at 9:00 pm at the Estadio Akron. The 27-man squad, who landed in Mexico on Monday night, held their first training session on Tuesday.

It’s the last shot for Jamaica after missing out on automatic qualification in November during the final round of Concacaf World Cup Qualifiers.

Speid, who took over at the end of November following Steve McClaren’s departure, has had limited time to work with majority of the squad and staff, given that there were no international windows prior this March date.

However, the Concacaf Caribbean Cup and Jamaica Premier League winning coach is making no excuses and says he’s put a lot of work in getting ready for this moment.

“Pressure is not something that matters to me at all,” Speid told the Jamaica Observer. “I think most of the time, the things that I set out to do, I would have achieved them and I am satisfied with giving it the best shot that I have and whatever the result is, I can live with it. But I’m telling you, I’m going to give it the best chance that we have. I’m going to give it everything, leave no stone unturned.”

Speid, though, knows it isn’t a solo effort and he’s confident everyone will play their role in making history once again.

“All of us want to go to the World Cup, all of us want to put some smiles on the faces of the hard-working Jamaicans who pay their money to come and watch us play football in the stadium, all of us want that individual pride that will come from going to the World Cup,” he said.

“There’s the monetary consideration, too, where players will be able to be in a better position to negotiate their personal contracts for their living. The JFF (Jamaica Football federation) will receive a windfall, and I’m sure somebody will be kind to me somewhere down the road. So, I can see us having all of those goals. As far as I’m concerned, everybody wants to achieve almost the same set of goals, maybe in different order, but want to achieve the same. My job is really just to try and put everything together and I’m trying my best to do that.”

Beating New Caledonia sets up a final match-up against Africa’s DR Congo next Tuesday for a spot at this summer’s tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

The Reggae Boyz, who last competed at the 1998 World Cup, are looking to join Portugal, Colombia and Uzbekistan in Group K.

Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz celebrate Bailey Cadamarteri’s opening goal in their 2-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago in the Concacaf World Cup Qualifer at the National Stadium on Tuesday, September 9, 2025. (Photo: Joseph Wellington)