More measured approach
Cavalier anticipate balancing act for regional competitions
Published:Friday | February 25, 2022 | 12:09 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
While their regional competition debut may be months away, Cavalier’s technical director Rudolph Speid says that adjustments to their current playing style are not just to meet international standards but also to continue their youth development philosophy as they seek a place in the revamped Concacaf Champions League.
Cavalier were drawn with Haitian club Violette and the Dominican Republic outfit Cibao FC in Group A earlier this month, for this year’s Caribbean Club Championship to take place in May. The 2022 edition will be the final year that the competition will take place, as the revamping of the Concacaf Champions League, starting next year, will see an expansion of the Caribbean allocation for the competition.
However, it will take place at a delicate time for Cavalier as they will be in the middle of their Jamaica Premier League (JPL) title defence, hunting for a play-off spot, hoping that by then their early-season struggles will be behind them, having lost three of their last five games, with red cards in four out of their last six.
Speid said that it is the reason why they are being patient with the younger core of their group this season, taking the time to guide them towards a playing style that will be strong enough for regional play.
“We want to get past the first round, so we are preparing our team to withstand that challenge, and that is why development is more important, because we really have three months to prepare to get past the first round and to get to the Concacaf section of the competition,” Speid told The Gleaner. “Of course, we still have to do enough here to get into the JPL play-offs because, if you are not in the play-offs, you don’t have a chance.”
NEXT LEVEL
Cavalier qualified for the competition, having won their first JPL title in four decades last year. During their difficult start to the season, Speid said that they had decided on a different approach in their play, to be more calculating in the league so that it can translate to the next level.
“Even our technical department is learning new stuff as we go along. We are adjusting our style of play to suit international play. That’s really what we are doing, because we know that we are going to come up against (strong) teams in the Caribbean Football Union play-offs, which we qualified to do so last year. It’s more of an adjustment, so Cavalier now has to try to be more measured,” Speid said.
Waterhouse will be the other Jamaican club in the tournament, as they were grouped with Dominican Republic’s Atletico Vega Real and Haitain club Arcachaie FC. The winners of the tournament will qualify for the 2023 Concacaf Champions League.