The U.S. Under-17 Women’s National Team will resume its quest for a berth to the 2018 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup when it meets Bermuda on June 6, 45 days after the teams were supposed to play their second Group A game in Managua, Nicaragua. The USA kicked off the tournament on April 20 with a rousing 4-0 victory against Costa Rica while Bermuda lost 3-0 to Canada. Then, civil unrest escalated quickly in Nicaragua and Concacaf made the correct decision to cancel the tournament.
The U.S. players have certainly been anxious to get back on the field as the tournament resumes at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. As Group A played two matches days before the tournament was postponed, Nicaragua and Puerto Rico were eliminated after both lost to Mexico and Haiti, and therefore neither will come to Florida.
The stakes, though, remain the same: Three World Cup bids and the confederation title are up for grabs. Here are five things to know about the slightly altered competition:
HOW IT WORKS, PART TWO
Six teams (down from the original eight after Nicaragua and Puerto Rico were eliminated) from North America, Central America and the Caribbean have gathered in Florida for the Concacaf Championship. They’ll battle it out for three spots at November’s FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup as the two finalists and third-place game winner will punch their tickets to Uruguay for that competition.
There will be just one more match played in Group A as Haiti and Mexico meet on June 8 to decide the group winner. While both teams have six points from two wins, Mexico holds a massive goals difference advantage so just a tie would put them atop the group.
The USA, Canada, Costa Rica and Bermuda will contest four more matches in Group B. The USA currently sits atop the group with three points and a +4 goal difference to Canada’s +3.
Canada, Mexico and the USA received automatic bids to the Concacaf Championship. Haiti finished first in Caribbean qualifying to earn their places in Managua, while Costa Rica took first in Central America.
|
Group A |
Group B |
|
Haiti |
Bermuda |
|
Mexico |
Canada |
|
|
Costa Rica |
|
|
USA |
ABOUT THE U-17S
The U.S. U-17 WNT are Concacaf’s reigning champs. While the team has suffered some untimely injuries in the run-up to the competition, it’s still riding a run of formidable form. Undefeated in 2018, the U-17s have lost just one game since the start of its cycle last year, scoring 79 goals while conceding just 13.
The USA will bring the same roster to Florida as it had in Nicaragua. Head coach Mark Carr’s 20-player roster includes 17 players born in 2001 (the cut-off for this age group) and three players born in 2002. Kennedy Wesley and Kate Weisner competed for the USA at the 2016 Concacaf Championship and FIFA World Cup. Eight players also represented the USA with Carr at the 2016 Concacaf Women’s U-15 Championship in Orlando, Fla.
U.S. U-17 WNT Concacaf Qualifying Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Angelina Anderson (Mustang FC; Danville, Calif.), Julia Dohle (New York City FC; Scarsdale, N.Y.)
DEFENDERS (6): Michela Agresti (FC Stars, Swampscott, Mass.), Talia DellaPeruta (NTH Tophat; Cumming, Ga.), Smith Hunter (Seattle Reign Academy; Seattle, Wash.), Makenna Morris (Bethesda SC; Germantown, Md.), Natalia Staude (NTH Tophat; Atlanta, Ga.), Kennedy Wesley (So Cal Blues; Rossmoor, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Hannah Bebar (Eclipse Select SC; Naperville, Ill.), Croix Bethune (Concorde Fire; Alpharetta, Ga.), Maya Doms (Davis Legacy; Davis, Calif.), Mia Fishel (San Diego Surf; San Diego, Calif.), Sophia Jones (San Jose Earthquakes; Menlo Park, Calif.), Astrid Wheeler (Concorde Fire; Atlanta, Ga.)
FORWARDS (6): Isabella D'Aquila (So Cal Blues; Mission Viejo, Calif.), Sunshine Fontes (Hawaii Rush; Wahiawa, Hawaii), Payton Linnehan (FC Stars; Douglas, Mass.), Samantha Meza (Solar SC; Dallas, Texas), Diana Ordoñez (FC Dallas; Prosper, Texas), Kate Wiesner (LAFC Slammers; Monrovia, Calif.)
HOW TO FOLLOW
|
Date |
Match |
Kickoff (ET) |
Venue |
|
June 6 |
USA vs. Bermuda |
5 p.m. on go90.com |
IMG Soccer Stadium; Bradenton, Fla. |
|
June 8 |
USA vs. Canada |
5 p.m. on go90.com |
IMG Soccer Stadium; Bradenton, Fla. |
The U-17s picks up against Bermuda on Wednesday, June 6 and wraps up the group stage on Friday, June 8 against Canada.
All games will be streamed live on go90, while the two semifinals and championship game will be broadcast on Univision Deportes Network. Fans can follow all of this month’s action on ussoccer.com U.S. Soccer’s official Facebook, Twitter (@ussoccer_ynt) and Instagram (@ussoccer_ynt) accounts.
COMPETITION AND USA HISTORY
The U-17 Women’s Championship is one of Concacaf’s newest tournaments. The confederation competition for this age group launched in 2008 in Trinidad & Tobago to qualify teams for the first-ever FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand. Since then, the tournament has been held biennially to send three Concacaf squads to the world stage.
The USA has taken home the confederation title a record three times in the five editions of the tournament (2008, 2012 and 2016). Mexico and Canada stand as the only other nations to win the competition, in 2010 and 2013, respectively. In 2008, Costa Rica became the only non-North American team to qualify for the World Cup at this level.
Over the decade of competition, several current WNT regulars have launched their international careers at the Concacaf U-17 Championship. Lindsey Horan, Morgan Brian and Taylor Smith helped lead the way for the USA in 2010, while Margaret Purce and Andi Sullivan guided the U-17s to the title in 2012. Mallory Pugh netted five goals for the U.S. at the 2013 tournament.
WORLD CUP AWAITS CONCACAF SIDES AFTER U-17 WWC FINAL DRAW
The Final Draw for the 2018 U-17 Women’s World Cup was held on May 30, but with Concacaf qualifying still to be completed, the three Concacaf teams were drawn as Concacaf 1, Concacaf 2 and Concacaf 3.
Group A
Uruguay Ghana New Zealand Finland
Group B
Concacaf 1 South Africa Brazil Japan
Group C
Concacaf 3 Cameroon Korea DPR Germany
Group D
Korea Republic Spain Concacaf 2 Colombia
Once the Concacaf tournament is complete, the qualified teams will know if they are Concacaf 1, 2 or 3 based on a system of points earned over the last five U-17 Women’s World Cup, with the points having descending weight back to 2008, as well as points earned for winning this year’s Concacaf title. The sixth FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup will be staged in Uruguay from Nov. 13-Dec. 1.