Shanelle Frederick from Cayman Brac

By Beverly Melbourne

Thirteen-year-old Shanelle Frederick from Cayman Brac made history in Haiti on Wednesday, 4 November by setting the stage as the first female from that island to score two international goals in the 2009 Caribbean Football Union World Cup qualifying games held there.

A student of the Cayman Brac High School, Shanelle made her successful debut on the grounds of the Sylvia Cator Stadium in Port Au Prince and wasted no time in setting her record. This has gone down in history and will be remembered by the community of Cayman Brac for a long, long time.

Based on her performance at club level and in training, she was selected as part of the squad of seventeen girls who traveled to Haiti earlier this month and successfully participated in that tournament. She along with her teammates braved the odds and made history beating British Virgin Islands 13-0, and Bahamas 2-1. Frederick scored twice against British Virgin Islands in the 43rd
and 49th minute.

Shanellle said that she feels great to have made such an historic accomplishment and praised her family and coaches for their role in supporting her to this level of success.

“I feel great; my success was a team effort. I am happy it took a lot of hard work and training for me to have reached that level. I thank my mother, my father, my sister my brothers my entire family, my coaches Mitchum Sanford, Bobby McLaren and Thiago Cunha for their support as without them this would not have been a reality,” she said.

“I am back in training with my team in the Cayman Brac and the National team preparing for the upcoming games against Dominican Republic next month. My intentions are to score some more goals to help my team qualify for the next phase and make my country proud,” she added.

Growing up in a closely knit and supportive football enthused family, Shanelle started to show a keen interest in the game at the age of seven, playing the game with her brothers and peers.

Shanelle’s says her football icon is Ronaldino and her focus is set on becoming a professional football player. She has been working very hard to reach that goal and has helped her teams to reach several finals and performs with passion on the field of play.

According to her first official football coach Mitchum Sanford President of the Cayman Brac Football Association (CBFA), Shanelle has always played her game with tremendous enthusiasm and for the past three years has become a permanent fixture on the Cayman Brac Under 15 team playing competitive football against boys in the Youth League and the Future SC Under 17 Girls team on the Cayman Islands.

“She has always played in the position of a forward, moving swiftly on the field of play. She is strong, flexible, well disciplined and a firm believer in God. Shanelle has always been one of the first players to remind me and the rest of her team to pray before the start of our games and training sessions,” Mr Sanford explained.

“She is growing into a respectable young lady and athlete throughout these islands and has begun to learn the art of becoming a highly prolific and efficient striker while maintaining a well balanced academic standard at her School,” he added.

“All of that hard work and fighting for a starting place in the Brac’s U-15 boys team last season combined with playing for Future FC Girls U-17 team and the National Girls U-17 team has all taken effect in her natural potentials and this has propelled her forward to greater heights than ever I would have imagined. I’m so proud of her and her family for continuing in this quest that has already resulted in much success.”

Adrian Jones Principal of the Cayman Brac High School was also impressed with her performance.

“I was extremely pleased when I heard of Shannelle’s accomplishments in representing the Cayman Islands in the tournament. We at the Cayman Brac High School admonish our students to aim high and to excel in every endeavor. Obviously she is making her mark in football, which is not just a result of her talent but a testimony of her dedicated efforts,” Mr Jones commented.

“This success will undoubtedly provide her with the confidence she needs to tackle the other difficulties she will encounter as a teenager and will be a source of strength for other youngsters as well. The entire school family joins in congratulating Shanelle on her success,” he added..

The courageous Cayman Islands National Under 17 girls captained by the fierce Tacita “Tata” Berry were a force to reckon with during the tournament defeating British Virgin Islands 13-0, Bahamas 2-1 and lost 1-0 to tough Haiti.

They were placed second in that group and will face Dominican Republic in a playoff in December for a place in the next phase of the competition set to be played next year in Costa Rica.

For more on the CIFA Competitions or other CIFA events contact the CIFA office at 949-5775, email info@caymanfootball.ky or log on to www.caymanfootball.ky