Reggae Girlz forward Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw believes that Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz need to adopt a system and style of play if they are to qualify for the World Cup in 2026.

Jamaica’s campaign for this year’s world cup in Qatar went up in smoke with the team losing all three matches in the most recent round of qualifiers. The Reggae Boyz lost 1-2 to Mexico at the National Stadium in Kingston on January 29, before being outscored by Panama 2-3 in Panama on February 2.

In their final match of the round, the Reggae Boyz lost 0-1 to Costa Rica in Kingston, a loss that has rendered their upcoming matches against Honduras and El Salvador to academic interest.

The Manchester City Women forward, who has scored 42 goals while in national colours, during a recent Instagram Live, lamented the absence of elements essential to team success.

“I keep hearing we are the best team on paper, but where is the system of play? I think we have an opportunity to restart now and put the resources in place, but we have to start doing so from the U-17 level,” she said.

“Not qualifying is disappointing because individually, our Boyz do very well, but it’s like we’re ignoring that we need a system that everyone can follow. It doesn’t start with our players. It starts with our Federation. They have to put the systems in place from the youth level.”

Shaw is set to don her national gear next Thursday, February 17 when Jamaica hosts Bermuda at the National Stadium in Kingston in the CONCACAF Women World Cup qualifiers. Following that match, Jamaica travels to take on Grenada in another qualifier on February 20.