Daddy would have been the girl's No. 1 supporter. [And] like he said, football
is freedom. And the girls are actually
now free to play this beautiful game.
If it wasn't for Cedella, there would be no
qualification. In Jamaica they call it
woman's time now. The women's senior team was disbanded due to lack of funding.
There was no Reggae Girlz team anymore. She's the one who saw the vision.
My youngest son came home from school with a flyer and it was asking for support for—I
think at that time was the under-17. She
funded the money and said 'Hey, we need a
women's team, here's the money—boom, let's make it happen.' We made some
calls, and I became the
ambassador. I grew up just believing I
could do whatever I wanted to do, and
just to believe that these girls were
being told they cannot play and we will
not support you just because you're
female, I started to get angry. I wanted
them to have the opportunity to do
something that they really love. Plus,
they're representing our country, you
can't ask to give a bigger sacrifice
than that.
It is historic that Jamaica has been the
first Caribbean country to qualify for
the Women's World Cup. Like, that's not
lost on me. I think that playing in the
World Cup is like a dream you have since
you're a little girl, and I think seeing
it come to fruition is amazing. Given the
circumstances that these girls are
coming from, they have already won in
my eyes. It's how we can sustain a female
programme in our country. In Jamaica they call it woman's time now. I'm glad it is
happening that people are now having the
conversations about women's league in
Jamaica, not only Jamaica but the
entire Caribbean region. And I still
pinch myself periodically. My daddy, he
loved the game. If he didn't learn how to
play guitar, he would probably be one of
the tiniest midfielder—or a striker!—on
the field. Daddy would have been the
girl's No. 1 supporter. And like he
said, you know, football is freedom. And
the girls are actually now free to play
this beautiful game.
 
