With the Grenadieres’ World Cup dream dismantled following a painful defeat to the U.S. Women’s national team, we caught up with Shanna Hudson to get her reflections on the 2014 CONCACAF Women’s Championship, which also serves as a qualifying tournament for the upcoming FIFA World Cup. Shanna, who has been training with Haiti’s Women’s national team for the past three years, answers our questions frankly and positively despite Haiti’s brutal exit from the qualifications for the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
In an exclusive chat with Haititempo.com, the former Southern California Trojans defender discusses her disappointments of the tournament, her hopes for the future of the Grenadieres and much more.
HT: Shanna, how would you summarize your experience at the 2014 CONCACAF women’s Championship?
SH: I thought it was great. I had a blast. Essentially it’s a great opportunity to do something you love at the international level. You eat, sleep, travel from city to city, play soccer and you’re surrounding by your teammates 24/7. What more could you ask for? There were also some great people we met along the way like Jake Strom, from Toms Shoes Company, and Tony Dicicco former U.S. Women’s national team coach who won the Olympics and a World Cup in 1999. It is a once in a lifetime experience that I will never forget.
HT: Obviously, you and your team-mates did not qualify for the upcoming World Cup. What do you think went wrong?
SH: Well, at the end of the day not having resources dramatically affect us and put us at huge disadvantage against the other teams. We trained 2-3 times a day with very little amenities to help with recovery; that could be seen in one of our players Manoucheka Pierre Louis who had knee problems all though camp that became so severe she couldn’t play games against neither Trinidad nor USA.
Additionally, I think we, as a team, are inexperienced internationally speaking. We played a lot of games all year long but struggled to play in tournaments or set up friendlies against other countries because again that cost money for flights, hotels, fields, etc.
HT: How do you feel personally about not being able to represent Haiti in the upcoming world cup in Canada?
SH: I’m absolutely gutted. Playing in a world cup is my dream. I sacrificed everything to chase this goal and this dream. I left my job back home, my fiancé; I put a lot of money, time, blood, sweat and tears into training on my own and with this national team. I certainly have no regrets though not many people get this opportunity. But ultimately there’s no time to sit and feel sorry for myself or this team. We must move forward and begin to look at 2019.Luckily, I can say that I am blessed to have that opportunity in front of me. From these last 2 years and a half, I’ve grown so much as an athlete and a person. So while the door to Canada 2015 slams in my face it also opens the door for growth and other opportunities in life. I’m blessed regardless.
At the end of the day Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither was this national team. This is our first big international experience so now, I’m certainly excited going forward to see how the dynamics of this program change with the financial backing of Toms, Bill Clinton and the Miami Heat. I’m pretty sure the next go around will be even more successful than the road to 2015. 
HT: Speaking of 2019, what do you think must be done in order to qualify the country for that tournament?
SH: We must gain more international experience consistently playing higher ranked teams.
We must continue to add quality players to our roster and grow our player pool so that it creates a more competitive environment in practice. The U.S. has a player pool of thousands while we have a player pool that falls probably under 100 right now.
We must continue to grow tactically and technically.
We must get the help we need financially so that players can train and have access to the things that allow their bodies to train at the individual’s highest ability consistently day in and day out. Thus allowing the individual’s to peak when the time is right.
I can say with confidence the current coaching staff is capable of accomplishing these tasks.
HT: Thank you for your time Shanna, any final words you’d like to share with us?
SH: I look forward to the opportunity to continue to be a part of this national team. I look forward to helping this country and the opportunity to see the changes that will be made and the growth that will happen consequently.
So many people look at our country and all they know is Haiti is a third-world country; they think poor, they think struggle. In regards to soccer, they only focus on the fact we didn’t qualify but they don’t know or understand that massive gains have been made over the last 3 years and even more importantly in the last few months. This is just the beginning of something special and great. The sky is the limit so there’s nowhere to go but up.
So many dreams at first seem impossible. And then they seem improbable. And then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.
Ayiti Ayiti Viktwa!!!!
Interview conducted by Benson Petit-Clair for haititempo.com
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