CAPTAIN Khadija Shaw was unstoppable, unrelenting, and utterly dominant as she spearheaded Jamaica’s Reggae Girlz to a resounding 4-0 victory over Antigua and Barbuda in the Concacaf Women’s Qualifiers at the National Stadium on Friday night.

The Manchester City striker’s hat-trick, comprising a penalty in the 45+1 minute, a close-range shot in the 49th minute, and a beautiful diving header in the 55th minute, cemented her reputation as one of the most feared and respected players in the region.

“The most important thing is the win,” Shaw said in a post-match interview.

“We wanted to do a professional performance, focusing on ourselves and correcting some of the mistakes we had in the past game. But the thing for me is that my position that I play is that the team looks to me to score the goals, and I just try my best to do that at the top of the pitch. It doesn’t always go to plan but [it does] more times than not, but I try my best to help the team in whatever way,” Shaw further said.

Shaw’s impressive performance was a demonstration of her exceptional skill, leadership, and work ethic. She has become the backbone of the Reggae Girlz, leading by example and inspiring her teammates with her tireless efforts on the pitch.

“I mean, I think it is pretty obvious that the goal is going back to the World Cup,” Shaw said, outlining the team’s ultimate objective,” stated Shaw, who has scored 65 goals from 47 appearances for the Reggae Girlz.

“This is our first time playing here in a while and we want to bring back the joy. Obviously the Boyz, we wanted them to qualify for the World Cup but situations happen. Now, we are here and we are trying our best to do our job to bring back smiles on the faces — and we appreciate everyone for coming out and support[ing] us, and we hoped that the performance that we [gave] tonight was pleasing,” Shaw explained.

Shaw, who scored her first goal for Jamaica’s senior team back in 2015 against the Dominican Republic, credited the team’s growing chemistry and cohesion for their improved performance, highlighting the importance of building strong relationships with her teammates.

“I think it is about building relationships with my teammates around me. We have some new faces in the group and so it is going to take a while to know their tendency, and they know mine as well. The more we train and the more we come together as a group, it will definitely come [cohesion] and so I am looking forward to that. It is a building process, and every game that comes we are building and getting strong,” Shaw said.

As the Reggae Girlz look to make their mark on the international stage, Shaw is confident that the team’s progress will continue, fuelled by the experience and expertise of its players.

“When you look at our revolution from the 2019 World Cup, we had one player playing professional as we all were in high schools and colleges. Fast-forward to now where it is the opposite where you have players playing at a high level across the world, [which will] definitely help the professional performances because we’re all playing against and playing with players that we are going to come up against [at] the international level,” she said.

“I think that helps us. And looking forward to the next World Cup, I think as a group we are all excited, we are all rearing to go. We knew what it took to go to the last one and how much effort it took to get there. Like I said, new coach and new style of play, we just have to trust the process — and I think that will work out for itself,” Shaw ended.

SHAW… I think it is about building relationships with my teammates around me

Jamaica’s Khadija Shaw celebrates scoring her third goal against Antigua and Barbuda in the Concacaf Women’s Qualifier at the National Stadium.