First-year Tigers midfielder Inari Moore is just days away from competing at the 2022 CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championships in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Moore will be representing Guyana and will take on Mexico, Panama, and Honduras in the group stage.
Moore is third generation Guyanese. Both her parents were born and raised in Guyana and moved to Canada at the age of eighteen. She has been in contact with the Guyana Football Federation for the last few years and will now finally be making her debut in international competition. “I'm really looking forward to showcasing myself on an international stage,” said Moore. “I feel honoured to represent my roots as well as [Dalhousie’s] soccer program.”
This is only Guyana’s second appearance at this tournament with the first coming at the last edition in 2020. They had a strong showing in their debut going 2-0-1 in the group stage before losing to Haiti in the quarter-finals. Moore will be looking to help her team build on that performance.
“It has been a goal of mine to compete at this level for a while,” explained Moore. “There is definitely an added sort of pressure to perform at this level, but I feel ready.”
Moore grew up in Whitby, Ontario and played with FC Durham before coming to Dalhousie. She committed to the Tigers in October of 2020 but was one of countless players who didn’t get to experience any game action until this season. After finally getting onto the field this past fall, Moore produced an excellent rookie season posting one goal and three assists in nine games.
Moore will be joining her Tigers coach Cindy Tye at the tournament. Tye was named head coach of Canada’s U-20 team back in October.
“This is a great opportunity for Inari,” said Tye. “As a first year, she grew throughout our season and was able to showcase her skill and athleticism. This is a chance for her to grow as a player, be exposed to international play, and [be] tested against some of the best U-20's in CONCACAF.”
The earliest possible match-up between Guyana and Canada wouldn’t come until the knockout stage so Tye and Moore will be cheering each other on until then. “It’s definitely nice to know she'll be there, who better to help you feel prepared to perform than your coach,” said Moore.
The 2022 CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championships will feature 20 teams from across North and Central America so there will be no shortage of new competition for Moore.
There's definitely a lot to be excited about,” said Moore. “I'm really looking forward to just meeting and playing against a new pool of athletes. “
The tournament gets underway later this week. Moore and Guyana take on Honduras on Saturday the 26th. Their second game will be versus Mexico on the 28th and then they will round out the group stage versus Panama on March 2nd.