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• Busby aiming to reset culture, objectives ahead of World Cup Qualifying campaign

  A reset of the culture as well as objectives of the Jamaica Senior Women’s National Team or “Reggae Girlz” is of paramount importance to returning Head coach Hubert Busby Jr.

  Busby Jr was rehired last week after previously serving in the role in 2021 and won’t have a lot of time to settle back into the role as his first assignment will be to navigate a pair of international friendlies with global football powerhouses Brazil on June 1 and 4.

  The two teams last met at the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup where a 0-0 draw secured the Reggae Girlz spot as the first Caribbean nation to ever advance from the group stage at a World Cup.

  

  The squad for these two friendlies can be looked at as a bit of a double-edged sword. On one hand, 18 of the members of the squad were in that history-making World Cup squad but, on the other hand, they haven’t played together since that tournament which was nine months ago.

  “I think coming back in with two weeks to go, there is a lot of work to do in a short period of time and the idea that the core of this particular group hasn’t been together in nine months so there’s a lot of work that we’re doing now behind the scenes to get up to speed in terms of watching Brazil and getting the players organized,” he said in an interview with JFFLive on Wednesday.

  Busby Jr then went into detail on two of his major objectives in his second stint as Head coach of the Reggae Girlz.

  “More importantly, I think, some of the objectives for us is to reset the culture, reset the objectives in terms of what we’re looking to do and understand, I know it’s the most used cliché in sports, but whatever we do, we really have to stick to a process of how we look to get back to the next World Cup in 2027,” explained Busby Jr.

  “This is just the first part in utilizing each and every window, making sure that, regardless of the results, we are hitting our targets of what we want to accomplish heading into the World Cup Qualifiers,” he added.

  Brazil will be using these friendlies as preparation for the Olympic Games where they won consecutive silver medals at Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008.

  These two friendlies will also be the last home international appearances for perhaps the greatest female footballer ever, Marta, who has announced that she will retire after the Paris Games.

  

  “This is going to be a little bit of a send-off match for them. It will also be Marta’s last game in Brazil in front of her home crowd before she retires and there’s a little bit of a revenge factor from what happened at the World Cup so we’ve got to manage all of that,” Busby Jr said.

  “We’re going to have these three training sessions and prepare the team for these matches,” he ended.

   

• Ederson to miss Man City's final two games of season

  Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson will miss the final two games of the season due to a fractured eye socket.

  The Citizens face West Ham on Sunday as they aim to win a fourth consecutive Premier League title, before taking on rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final on May 25.

  The goalkeeper was involved in a heavy collision with Cristian Romero in their 2-0 win over Tottenham on Tuesday, with the goalkeeper initially allowed to continue after receiving treatment before being replaced by Stefan Ortega.

  City revealed Ederson has since undergone scans which revealed a small fracture to the right eye socket, forcing him out of their last two games of the season.

• Trip of a Lifetime! JustBet to take lucky football fan to London for UCL Finals 2024

  Pepetho Barrett, a devoted Real Madrid fan, is walking on air after winning an all-expenses-paid trip for two to the UEFA Champions League final between Dortmund and Real Madrid at the iconic Wembley Stadium in London courtesy of JustBet and SportsMax.

  Overflowing with excitement, Barrett exclaimed, "I am still in shock. It's a dream come true to watch my team live. I'm so grateful to JustBet for providing me with an opportunity that seemed out of reach," he added. “Winning this trip is amazing and knowing that I get to watch my team, Real Madrid live, makes it a trip of a lifetime!”

  JustBet, Jamaica's premier sports betting and entertainment brand presented Barrett with a symbolic boarding pass at Sabina Park during the hotly contested Jamaica Premier League semi-finals on Sunday, May 12, 2024.

  In addition to the main prize, Anthony Belcher secured the third-place prize, claiming a brand new Apple iPhone 15 Prom Max. Steven Lindsay emerged as the second-place winner, walking away with a cutting-edge entertainment system complete with a TV, PS5, and soundbar.

  “Sports betting is our fastest growing segment at Supreme Ventures and so it made sense for us to enhance our customers betting experience by partnering with Sportsmax to offer a chance to win a once-in- a-lifetime experience at the UCL Finals,” remarked, Kamal Powell, Head of Marketing at Supreme Ventures Limited. “There’s much more in store for us here at JustBet so we encourage our players to join the action and don’t miss an opportunity to feel the thrill of winning.”

  The highly anticipated match that represents the pinnacle of club football is set for June 1.