‘We will focus on ourselves’
Hallgrimsson wants to win, but wants to build too
Published:Tuesday | March 14, 2023 | 1:30 AMLivingston Scott/Gleaner Writer
EVEN AS Jamaica head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson looks to turn the table on regional rivals, Trinidad and Tobago, when the teams meet in the second game of their two-match friendly series at the National Stadium tonight at 7, his concern is the chemistry of his youthful Boyz.
Hallgrimsson lost his first game on local soil on Saturday, going down 1-0 to the Soca Warriors, and he thought his young and inexperienced squad was still learning to play with each other and believes this might be the case again tonight.
“Nobody likes to lose. Hopefully we can turn the loss to a win the next game,” the Icelandic coach said prior to training yesterday.
“Given a lot of players were playing their first senior national team game, a lot of them are young players. We have to give them some slack, for some it is too much (for them).
“Tomorrow (today) we will probably play the players who didn’t play in the first game. So we will see new faces again and new players playing with each other, and as we saw in Montego Bay, the understanding between players may not be perfect.”
Hallgrimsson said there were instances of miscommunication between the players in Montego Bay but he contends that this is usually the case when new players are just coming together.
“When somebody wanted it long, the pass came short and when somebody wanted it short, the pass came long. So there were not only technical mistakes, there was misunderstanding between players and that happens when you have new players and young players playing together for the first time.”
Although aiming for a victory to appease the disappointed fans for losing his first home game, Hallgrimsson insists the game is not about results, but the future of the programme.
He also expects another tough duel with the Soca Warriors, who he described as well organised.
“We gave some players their first cap and we gave them some experience and we will see if they are ready for the future.
“That is what we are looking at when we have this camp. It is not about the result and the performance today,” he said.
“They (Trinidad) will probably be happy with their performance in the (first) match. I am not particularly worried about what they are doing, I have enough with what we are doing. We are just focusing on Jamaica and the players for us.
“It is a competitive team, Trinidad. I give them a lot of credit. They were organised and difficult to break down. It was tough but we will focus on ourselves.”