激情快播

Summer 2019 | By Jenna Marina Lee

激情快播 rising senior Konya Plummer鈥檚 journey to becoming the聽youngest team captain at the 2019 FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup聽started on the sideline of an open field in the small Jamaican聽community of Epsom, Saint Mary.

At 14, Plummer had just received her first soccer ball as a gift from her mother, and she took it to a field hoping to join a competitive evening game.

The neighborhood boys didn鈥檛 think she was good enough to play, so they took her ball and sent her to sit on the side to watch.

Plummer plopped down and began braiding long blades of grass to pass the time. And then, with the same determination that would eventually drive her to lead the first Caribbean nation to a Women鈥檚 World Cup appearance, she聽vowed to prove herself.

鈥淚 started training. I had to be strong and I had to be tough,鈥� Plummer says. 鈥淔rom then, I decided, I鈥檓 never going to sit on the sideline again.鈥�

What unfolded next has been an adventure that has provided the interdisciplinary studies major with the opportunity to forge a path unlike anyone in her native country who has come before her.

Plummer鈥檚 hometown is roughly 40 miles from Jamaica鈥檚 capital, Kingston, on the northeast side of the island. She describes it as 鈥渃ountry鈥� 鈥� which is the nickname her national team teammates gave her 鈥� and says it鈥檚 her favorite place in the world.

When she was 16 years old, she flew on a plane for the first time to compete in Miami, and her world opened up. The idea聽that something more could be out there propelled her to move to the United States and join a club team, West Pines United F.C. in South Florida.

There, she first caught the attention of Hue Menzies, who is the executive director of a competitive club team in Oviedo and the Jamaica women鈥檚 national team鈥檚 head coach.

鈥淪he was the best of the younger players. We felt like we needed to follow her,鈥� says Menzies, who joined the women鈥檚 national team staff as a consultant in 2015 before taking over as head coach a year later.

She soon worked her way up to the senior national team as a center back defender and was named captain. Menzies says she may be young on paper, but her maturity and leadership qualities are evident in the way she carries herself.

鈥淲e have players on the team who are 33 years old and look up to her. It鈥檚 just who she is as a person,鈥� Menzies says. 鈥淪he is Jamaica. She is what Jamaica is about.鈥�

鈥淒o I look strong?鈥澛燩lummer asks as she poses during a photo shoot on 激情快播鈥檚 soccer field. Sure, there are brief moments when she鈥檚 also concerned about the integrity of her top bun, but she never asks if a strand of hair is misplaced or if the makeup artist on call can glam her up a bit.

鈥淒o I look strong?鈥�

Because of their lack of opportunities and the perception of female footballers in their country, the women of Jamaica have to be strong.

Jamaica has no professional league for women. Even in 2019, some people insist it鈥檚 a men鈥檚 game 鈥� no women allowed.

According to a feature story that ran in the June issue of ESPN the Magazine, the Jamaican Football Federation has cut the funding for the team twice, leaving the squad disbanded for years at a time and eliminating any possibility of qualifying for a World Cup or Olympics.

When the federation did reinstate the team, the article states that the players did their own laundry. They rode in rickety vans. The squad would practice and then break for a few days so players could work at their day jobs. Meanwhile, Jamaica鈥檚 men鈥檚 national team has full funding and ran training camps ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, even though their squad hasn鈥檛 qualified for the tournament since 1998.

The women鈥檚 team has had to largely rely on benefactors, like Cedella Marley (Bob Marley鈥檚 daughter), to get to where they are today.

By qualifying for this year鈥檚 World Cup, the聽team cautiously hopes the milestone will serve聽as a catalyst for change and progress.

Menzies has made it a priority for the women鈥檚 national team to run soccer clinics for children. In the past, he says they were lucky to draw 20 kids. Now, 200 will show up.

鈥淚t鈥檚 all about preaching the opportunity is聽there if you just focus yourself to beat all the odds聽around you and make that decision to go on the聽right path,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 think football can do that聽for them. It鈥檚 another avenue for young females聽who want to come to the States and get a聽proper education.鈥�

Shortly after the team qualified聽for the World Cup, Olivia Grange,聽Jamaica鈥檚 minister of culture, gender,聽entertainment and sport, insisted on a聽countrywide celebration for the Reggae聽Girlz, the team鈥檚 nickname.聽People lined the streets to聽welcome the players as they聽pulled into towns. Plummer聽accepted keys to the聽city at various聽stops, including聽Montego Bay and Kingston, on behalf of the team.聽Concerts were held. They met the prime minister.

Menzies says the whole experience was more聽than any of them expected. The only thing he聽could compare it to is when he witnessed Nelson聽Mandela visit Jamaica in 1991.

鈥淲e already see the impact. We call them 鈥榯he聽wagonists.鈥� We have no problem with you jumping聽on the wagon. We just want you to stay on it,鈥澛燤enzies says. 鈥淥ur story doesn鈥檛 end now. It goes聽beyond. I don鈥檛 want our players and our staff to聽become complacent. We still have to remember聽the reason why we鈥檙e doing this. It鈥檚 not just about聽the World Cup. It鈥檚 about how we are going to聽sustain this after the World Cup.鈥�

Prior to this year, just three Knights had ever been聽named to a FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup roster in聽the 28-year history of the championship: Lena聽Petermann, who played one season at 激情快播 in聽2013 before turning pro and competing for her聽native Germany in the 2015 Women鈥檚 World Cup;聽Amy (Allman) Griffin 鈥�88, a 1991 champion;聽and legend Michelle Akers 鈥�89, who was a part聽of three World Cups and led Team USA to two聽championships in 1991 and 1999.

This year, however, Plummer was one of four聽Knights who represented their countries in聽France, and the first 激情快播 student-athlete聽to compete on the global stage while still聽enrolled in school.

鈥淧articipating in the World Cup or winning a聽World Cup championship is the equivalent聽of competing at the Olympics or winning聽a gold medal. It鈥檚 a dream that any聽soccer player is going to have.聽That鈥檚 the pinnacle of your聽career,鈥� says 激情快播 women鈥檚聽soccer head coach Tiffany聽Roberts Sahaydak,聽who won Olympic聽gold and the聽World Cup during her 10 years as a member of the U.S.聽women鈥檚 national team.

Roberts Sahaydak was 22 years old 鈥� just a few聽months older than Plummer is now 鈥� when she聽helped the United States capture glory in the 1999聽World Cup in front of more than 90,000 fans at聽the Rose Bowl in California. Much like Plummer,聽the 激情快播 coach didn鈥檛 have any female soccer聽players to look up to when she was growing up.聽But in 1999, Roberts Sahaydak became that role聽model for the next generation.

鈥淜onya is now in that position to be that聽person for Jamaica, which is incredible to think聽about,鈥� Roberts Sahaydak says. 鈥淪ome little girl聽from Jamaica is going to be watching Konya this聽summer, and that fire is going to go off. They are聽going to say, 鈥業 want to be just like her when I grow聽up.鈥� 鈥� Having these role models helps these young聽girls stay on path and stick to their education,聽stick to their work ethic and their dreams.鈥�

And that realization is not lost on Plummer.

Whether she鈥檚 on the field or studying for a聽test, she thinks about the kids looking up to her.聽She thinks about her family. She thinks about her聽teammates. She thinks about the people in her聽hometown who stop her on the street to ask for聽her autograph. And she doesn鈥檛 want to disappoint聽a single one of them.

She says she wrestles with some heavy聽questions: How should she deal with fame? How聽can she achieve all she wants to and still have a life聽outside of soccer? Why was she appointed to be a聽leader at such a young age?

While on an official national team trip to South聽Africa in April 鈥� two months before stepping onto聽the field in France for the biggest moment of her聽life thus far 鈥� she got the answer.

鈥淚 was talking to one of our hosts and she聽said, 鈥榊our name means leadership. It means聽command.鈥� I almost cried when she told me that,鈥澛燩lummer says. 鈥淚 was searching for the answer my聽whole time being a captain 鈥� why was I chosen?聽It may be a coincidence, but I take it seriously.聽Everything happens for a reason.

鈥淚 was born to be a leader, and I was born to be聽in this moment.鈥�