Latest News
Still no timeline for ‘Bunny’ Shaw’s return - Jamaica name 21-member squad for US friendly
May 20, 2025
There is still no timeline for the return of Reggae Girlz and Manchester City star striker Khadija 'Bunny' Shaw, who has been sidelined with a muscle injury since the English Women League Cup final on March 15 against Chelsea.
Shaw, who finished joint top scorer of the Women's Super League (WSL), England's premier division, with 12 goals from 13 matches, missed the last nine matches of the season as well as Jamaica's two friendlies against Mexico in April.
However, in naming his 21-member squad to face the United States (US) in an international friendly on June 3 in the US, Busby provided some update on the injured talisman.
"I spoke to her a few weeks ago. There is really no set time. We will allow the medical staff to work with her and her medical team with that. Right now it is indefinite," he said.
"It's about recovery and where she is at. There is no timeline for her to come back.
"I will defer to the medical staff and the people at Man City, although the most important person is 'Bunny' and when she'll be ready," he stated.
He pointed to her importance to both club and country and said she must be given adequate time for her injury to properly heal.
"She is going to need more time to get herself and her strength back where it needs to be. If it was best for Bunny to come back in one game, as much as we would want her, is that in the best interest of her, with the idea that both club and country need her. So all things have to be weighed up.
"So I want to defer to the experts and they will provide that information to me and the technical staff and we will go from there," he said.
He added that Shaw continues to be a big miss for the Girlz but that others will have to try to fill her big boots.
"She is a huge miss. She is still dealing with an injury. We hope to have (goalkeeper) Becky Spencer back for the England game. But we do not want to risk these players after coming off long seasons," Busby stated.
"So it has become the old adage, who is going to step up now in her absence, not to replace her but in terms of filling that void and allowing us to play the way we want to play, doing some different things while staying in our philosophy and what we want to do, using that player in that position.
"We probably had the toughest fixture of any women's team in our region this year and we have been able to get results with 'Bunny' in the team and some without 'Bunny' and the veteran players. And again, it is just another opportunity for these players to step up and let the coaching staff know they want a spot on this roster."
