Local Boyz leave today for Trinidad friendlies

A squad of local players will leave the island today for Trinidad and Tobago to play a pair of friendlies.

The two friendly matches are set for Friday and Sunday.

With the matches falling outside of a mandated FIFA window, players based overseas have not been selected to line up in the fixture.

This will be the second time in a year that the two nations have arranged a pair of friendly matches as last year Jamaica were the hosts. The first game ended in a 1-0 win for Trinidad while the teams played to a 0-0 draw in the second game.

The last time both nations played against each other in a competitive fixture was in the group stages at the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup, where Jamaica defeated Trinidad 4-1.

In the lead-up to these friendlies, head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson hosted a series of local training camps as well as practice matches against Jamaica Premier League teams.

The local-based Boyz defeated Vere United, Humble Lion and Montego Bay United during the training camps.

Speaking after their match against Montego Bay United, Hallgrimsson highlighted the importance of practice games that allowed his coaching staff to assess the players in a match setting.

"It was a good match just to see them play together, play as pairs and as lines of four and two. A match will give you much more than a training session, so it is good to see them in action. When that happens, we can see mistakes happen that we need to correct.

"That, for me, is the most important thing. If we are drilling something, I can see that once we are playing the match. Sometimes it's about individuals when you step on the field, especially for the national team, you want to show how good you are. Really what we want to see from them is how good they are in a team," Hallgrimsson.

The first match will kick off on Friday at the Ramjohn Stadium in Marabella. The Boyz will then face Trinidad again on Sunday at the Larry Gomes Stadium in Arima. Both matches are set for 3 p.m. Jamaica time.

The next assignment for the Boyz will be the Concacaf Nations League semi-finals against the USA on March 21.