Georgia State women’s soccer player, true freshman Taina Anglade, was recently honored with a call-up to the senior squad of the Haitian Women’s Soccer National team.
She spent a weekend on Jan. 16 – 18 training with the team. The Georgia State defender received the call-up after coming off a stellar first season for the Panthers where she started all twenty games for the women’s team, playing every minute of every match.
Anglade was contacted by the national coach of the Haitian women’s team, Shek Borkowski, after her father, Herlandy Anglade, initially got in touch with him about his daughter’s interest in and availability for the national squad.
Borkowski also coaches FC Indiana of the Women’s Professional Soccer League (WPSL) and has been a good friend of Georgia State women’s soccer head coach Derek Leader for over 20 years, per the official Georgia State Athletics press release.
“It was my dad actually who had got in contact with the Fédération Haïtienne de Football (FHF) about 3 months ago, just letting them know and making them aware that I was interested and available if they ever needed me and Borkowski thanked us. Then later he called Coach Leader and asked if I was willing to come down and start training with the team, so that was that and then I went to camp,” Anglade said.
Coach Leader was very supportive of Anglade’s call up and is happy that Anglade is the first Georgia State soccer player, men’s and women’s, to be called up to represent a senior international side.
“As a freshman, Taina started and played every minute of every game this year. Her impact was tremendous. The call up to play for one’s nation is an honor for both Taina and Georgia State. We are very proud of her and look forward to her representing both her immediate and Panther family,” Leader said.
Freshman star
The call-up for Anglade comes after a dream season for the freshman in which she transitioned from playing as a wide right forward at the high school level to playing as a wide right defender for Georgia State.
Anglade’s style of play is reminiscent of recent American World Cup star DeAndre Yedlin who also plays at right back for the United States Men’s National Team. Both players use their incredible speed to burst down the wing to create attacking chances for their sides while also being able to recover defensively.
She was initially wary of stepping back into a defensive role but has since come to embrace her place in the squad and feels she brings a lot to the team.
“I would say I brought a lot of ambition, a lot of speed, a lot of willingness to work. I moved positions. It was a big thing for me. I didn’t know what I was doing at all; all season they had to coach me through every step. It was a lot of dedication to working even though I wasn’t in my ideal situation. I kind of felt that I proved everyone wrong,” Anglade said.
Training with the national squad
Anglade and her teammates met up in Fort Lauderdale, Florida where they participated in two-a-day sessions over the course of the weekend as well as a scrimmage. Anglade acknowledged the step-up in terms of quality that her teammates brought to the field.
“The camp was a lot of work honestly. The girls were really sweet. Some of them were young, some of them were a lot older than me and there were nine of us in total. The talent was there I would say. It was only U.S. and Canadian based players. We did four training sessions and a scrimmage; we trained in the morning and night each day,” Anglade said.
Anglade spoke about what it means to represent the country of her parents’ birth, noting both feelings of pride and responsibility to perform.
According to FIFA regulations, Anglade is eligible to play for both Haiti and the United States. Despite training with the senior Haitian squad, Anglade is still eligible to join up with either teams in the future, as she has yet to play in an official competitive match for either team. Anglade made it clear though that her loyalties lie with the Haitian squad.
“I would definitely play for Haiti; I would play for Haiti for sure. America plays with a lot of talent, but going there and having that experience, I’ve never met a group of girls who play with more heart and soul than anyone I’ve ever met,” Anglade said.
The next step for the Anglade and the Haitian Women’s Soccer National team is preparation for qualification for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and the 2019 Women’s World Cup. The Haitian Women’s Soccer National team did not qualify for the upcoming 2015 Women’s World Cup which is being held in Canada. Anglade is confident of helping her nation qualify.
“I’m on the team and I’m expecting to get the call-up for those competitions,” said Anglade.
