Campeonato Nacional de Fútbol Femenino Categoría "A" 2015 The top flight in Ecuador was reformed back in 2013 as a result of the national team’s success in pursuit of qualifying for the World Cup in Canada. The change paid off as in December 2014 the national team qualified for their first ever World Cup. However the league still has a long way to go as the majority of the teams do not pay their players with Rocafuerte being the exception. The major change in 2013 was the introduction of club sides whereas before it was a more regional competition and as of 2015 there are 12 teams who compete in the top flight (listed below) and are split into 3 groups of 4 (A, B & C). Although the introduction of three separate groups is a fairly new concept with the previous season being based on a 12 team league table, personally I felt this worked better. Anyway listed below are the 12 teams who are currently competing along with their kit colour and alternate kit should they have one. Also included is a list of the recent Ecuadorian international players who play for each club. Teams
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In an attempt to improve the quality of the league the Trinidadian FA have introduced the Women’s Premier League (WPL) which will feature 6 franchises. The model of the league would be similar to that of Major League Soccer (MLS) in America, where each of the 6 franchises are allocated 2 market player slots who are Trinidad & Tobago internationals, with a number of other spots being made up of local talent. The other slots of the team will be made up from a host of other nationalities which include USA, Canada, Guyana, Jamaica, and Venezuela as well as a number of players from England including Manchester City goalkeeper, Elizabeth Seasman and striker Isabella Hayes, also of Manchester City. The aim of the league is to raise the profile of women’s football in Trinidad & Tobago over time as well as bringing excitement to the fans while growing the fan base in each community. The Women’s Premier League will last for two months having started in mid-June and will play in a variety of destinations around the country. With a number of sponsors on board as well as an appealing logo, the league looks set be a success on put Trinidad & Tobago firmly on the Women’s football map. The 6 teams are:
* PETROTRIN Oilers do not operate under the same guidelines as the other 5 franchises as they field a development team allowing scholarship opportunities for other players. It means they do not follow the strict US NCAA rules and do not pay a wage for their players. Remember to follow the league on twitter (@WPLTT) and like the page on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/wpltt)
Canada looks set to be a busy place this summer as having just finished hosting what was statistically the most successful Women’s World Cup are set to host the Pan-American games which will feature a host of sports and run for just over 2 weeks, however the focus here will be on the women’s football at the tournament. In total 8 teams will be participating in Canada, where over half of them had just taken part at the World Cup there so those teams may be at an advantage or equally a disadvantage. The 8 teams are hosts Canada as well as automatic qualifiers Mexico, while the Central American qualifiers are Costa Rica and the Caribbean qualifiers are Trinidad & Tobago. Rounding off the teams are 4 South American qualifiers including Brazil, Colombia and Ecuador, all of whom participated at the World Cup along with Argentina. These 8 teams are split in to two groups of 4 with group A including Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago, Argentina and Colombia, while group B includes the hosts Canada, Brazil, Costa Rica and Ecuador. Group A Mexico Manager: Leonardo Cuéllar Captain: Nayeli Rangel Key player: Charlyn Corral – The 23-year-old striker who currently plies her trade in Finland has a goal record for her country that reads roughly a goal every other game. She is a pacey forward who likes to get in behind the defence. Fresh off the back of a disappointing World Cup campaign which saw Mexico prop up group F with just a point, Mexico go into the tournament not in the best of form and will need to put a better showing in order if they are to achieve anything. El Tricolor will be wanting to go one better than their first appearance 1999 which also took place in Canada when they reached the final. Since then Mexico have gone on to participate in three Pan American games which resulted in reaching the semi-finals each time (2003, 2007, 2011), finishing 3rd on two occasions. I for one believe that they are capable of achieving something at the tournament and should be looking be in amongst the medals. Trinidad & Tobago Manager: Randy Waldrum Captain: Tasha St Louis Key player: Kennya Cordner – The nations hopes could rest on the well-travelled striker if they are to cause any upsets at the tournament. After a heart breaking last minute goal by Ecuador which denied Trinidad & Tobago a spot at their first ever World Cup they will be determined to prove what they can do and have a number of players which can shine. However expectations will be low for T&T as they have always failed to make it out the group on all previous occasions at the Pan American games and given the group they are in it will be a tough ask if they are to compete for a medal. Although a threatened boycott before the tournament due to low match fees may have split the camp, meaning team spirit may not be as high and could hamper any progress. Argentina Manager: Luis Nicosia Captain: Fabiana Vallejos Key player: Estefanía Banini – Now playing in America for Washington Spirit, Banini is seen as an exceptional talent in her homeland and has that underlining bit of quality which can win her team’s games. Argentina will be wanting to make a big impression at the tournament after they failed to qualify for the World Cup in Canada this year having finished outside the top 3 in the Copa America in 2014. Argentina will fancy their chances though as they are in a more favourable compared with group B. Albicelestes will want to improve on their 2011 Pan American games as they finished bottom of their group which included Brazil, Canada and Costa Rica with only a single point to show for their efforts. This tournament will also be a good test for them as 2 of their group opponents participated at the World Cup, so it will be interesting to see how they have developed as a nation. My feeling is though that Argentina may end up taking the wooden spoon home. on home. Colombia Manager: Fabián Taborda Captain: Natalia Gaitán Key player: Lady Andrade – A very technically gifted player who showcased her talents at the World Cup as well as chipping in with a couple of goals in the process. Andrade will be the main threat for Colombia and she could be the difference between a medal or not. Colombia will return to Canada high on confidence after their most successful World Cup campaign having reached the knockout stages for the first time in their history. Las Cafeteras showed excellent form back in Mexico at the 2011 Pan American games where they topped the group ahead of Mexico, however they did lose out to them in the all-important 3rd/4th place play-off having been eliminated previously 2-1 to Canada. If Colombia play how they have been playing I fully expect them to advance to the knockout stages and even clinch a medal. In my view they are the 3rd best team in the tournament. Group B Canada Manager: John Herdman Captain: Stephanie Labbe Key player: Kadeisha Buchanan – She arrives at the tournament on the back of being one of Canada’s stand out players at the World Cup and this was supported by her winning young player of the tournament. Buchanan is a defender who is not afraid of a challenge and I expect her to demonstrate this at the Pan Am games. The hosts will be wanting to emulate their success from the World Cup where they reached the quarter-finals before being eliminated by England. Deep down the Canadians will be disappointed they did not go further in the tournament but with certain players emerging there is definitely a bright future ahead. The Canadians have fond memories of their previous Pan American games in 2011 where they clinched their first ever title having beat Brazil in the penalty shootout. I think Canada, like Brazil will realistically be aiming for gold and I believe they will achieve that, especially with the nation fully behind them on home soil. Brazil Manager: Vadão Captain: Marta Key player: Marta – Arguably the World’s best player and captain of her country, Marta is one of the highest paid female footballers in the World. She is also the highest ever scorer for her country with 91 goals, although she wasn’t that prolific at the last World Cup. However I expect her to play a big part in Brazil’s Pan Am campaign. Brazil go into the Pan-American games on the back of what was a poor showing at the World Cup falling at the last 16 to Australia, so will be wanting better and realistically should be looking to achieve gold. As Canarinhas have a good track record in previous Pan American games with 2 golds and a silver to their name out of the four previous games (did not compete in 1999). Brazil’s 2 golds came in the Dominican Republic in 2003 and as hosts in 2007, while their silver came in Mexico 4 years ago. I would favour Brazil to advance from the group along with hosts Canada, but they do need to show a much better standard of performance to avoid succumbing to any upsets. Costa Rica Manager: Amelia Valverde Captain: Shirley Cruz Key player: Raquel Rodríguez – A player who can play midfield or up front is another standout player from one of the emerging women’s nations at the last World Cup. Rodriguez has the honour of scoring Costa Rica’s first ever World Cup goal and what a goal it was. At only 21 she has the opportunity to grab the Pan Am games by the horns and help the Costa Ricans achieve something special. Like a number of participating teams at the Pan American games, Costa Rica have a chance to continue from where they left off in Canada last month as they were very close to advancing to the knockout stages. They ended the tournament with 2 draws and a loss, but attention now moves swiftly onto the Pan American games also taking place in Canada. Costa Rica did participate at the last games back in 2011 when the tournament took place in Mexico, but left it with just a point, 6 behind Brazil and Canada who both advanced. It is my opinion that should Costa Rica play with the same desire as shown last month in Canada and have polished up their defending then they might surprise the Brazilians or Canadians. Ecuador
Manager: Vanessa Arauz Captain: Ligia Moreira Key player: Kerly Real – At only 16, Real has already shown glimpses what she can do during the recent World Cup in Canada. The midfielder come attacker definitely has a bright future in the game and the Pam Am is the perfect place to showcase her skills further. La Tricolor will be looking for a better showing than their recent World Cup campaign, however they can take plenty of heart from the tournament with an impressive showing against Japan in their final group game. The Pan American games in Canada should be used as a measure to see the progress they have made since their last appearance in this tournament which was 8 years ago back in 2007 in Brazil. The 2007 edition was one to forget as back then it was a group of 5 teams and Ecuador conceded a whopping 17 goals and lost 3 of their 4 games, while only going on to score 4 (all of which came in a 4-2 win over Uruguay). They have had time to reflect on their World Cup performance and I expect them to do well with what is a young but very talented squad. A potential challenge, but may just fail to get out of the group. |
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