It’s been 15 years since Jamaica last got a taste of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup. Now, they’re just one game away and the coaching staff believes the young Reggae Boyz can topple Canada and end the drought.

Jamaica only need a draw against the Canadians in their final game of the Concacaf Under-17 Qualifiers to book their spot at this winter’s World Cup in Qatar.

While both teams are tied on six points in Group G, Jamaica boast an eight-goal superior goal difference after beating Aruba 3-0 and demolishing Cayman Islands 12-0. Canada only managed a 3-0 win over Cayman after hammering Aruba 5-1.

Though only needing a point, head coach Wendell Downswell says they plan to manage the game as best as possible.

“For the first 45 minutes, we’ll play our own natural game, how we generally play and then as time progresses, especially during the second half, we will make the necessary adjustments from a tactical standpoint,” he told the Observer Online.

Jamaica were in a similar position last year when they only needed a draw against El Salvador to qualify. However, a late goal saw them go down 1-2.

Assistant coach Vassell Reynolds believes they’ve taken lessons from the 2025 campaign and says their mentality will be key in advancing.

“I think the coaching staff, which is the same coaching staff with the exception of Coach Downswell, are very mindful of what transpired last year and would have learned from last year’s competition and we’re in a better position to be with this one,” he told the Observer Online.

“A few of the boys that are presently on the team were in Guatemala last year and would have experienced that. I think that experience would have helped us to prepare for this one mentally and we all know that (today) is more about mental fortitude than anything else. We have done the work technically, we’re just fine-tuning some things for the game tomorrow but I think it will be our mental capacity both as a coaching staff and as a team that we’re relying on to take us across the line.”

Jamaica are looking to qualify for the Under-17 World Cup for the third time in their history, having last done so in 2011. Since then, none of Jamaica’s men’s teams, across all age groups, have qualified for the biggest stage.

Reynolds says that qualifying would serve as a major source of inspiration for the country’s football programme.

“From the outset, we reminded the boys that this unit would be the first unit that is in a position to make the federation, stakeholders and Jamaica proud. We have the opportunity of qualifying the nation for a global event and that is on the forefront of everybody’s mind going into the game,” he said.

“It’s very significant that we qualify this unit and this will set the platform for the other units and for the youth development future on a whole. We have invested a lot in these players from the under-14 stage through to the under-15 and we are very pleased with the transition that they would have made up to the under-17 and we just want them to do what is necessary to achieve that objective and to continue to build that foundation to assist with the technical development of our youth programme going forward.”

Downswell also believes this could uplift the nation’s spirits as they continue to recover from Hurricane Melissa.

“We are pretty confident. The entire staff and players are very optimistic based on our preparation and our performance, we’re on the verge of creating another historical thing and we are really looking forward to it,” he said.

“It is of utmost significance to us. Yes, one, for the players, their community, their schools, their clubs and most importantly, the federation and by extension Jamaica, as it relates to us qualifying and the fact that with the advent of Melissa, this would be a very good gesture as it relates to us qualifying for another Under-17 World Cup.”