Jamaica Take Step Closer to FIFA World Cup Finals
Reggae Boyz extend their unbeaten run to six games against Caribbean rivals Trinidad & Tobago
Bailey-Tye Cadamarteri and Jon Russell were on target as Jamaica drummed up a 2-0 CONCACAF World Cup qualifier triumph over Trinidad & Tobago on Tuesday night.
Although the Reggae Boyz snatched maximum points, they were given a run for their money by Dwight Yorke’s battling troops inside Kingston’s National Stadium.
The visitors found the back of the net thrice through livewire Levi Garcia, only for all three of his efforts to be ruled out by VAR.
This result leaves the Soca Warriors needing to up the ante, and score goals, in their remaining Group B games if they want to qualify for the cash-rich FIFA World Cup finals next year.
Jamaica started well with the pace of Renaldo Cephas constantly bamboozling Crystal Palace’s teenage right-back Rio Cardines. He got the ball rolling by setting up Kasey Palmer in the fourth minute, but the Hull City midfielder’s long-range shot soared over the crossbar.
It was a disjointed initial 20 minutes, full of fouls and wasted corners, until T&T skipper Garcia picked out Kobi Henry in the penalty area. The central defender made a mess of his chance, heading over the gaping goalmouth from only six yards.
At the half-hour mark most of the 25,000 crowd was briefly silenced. Garcia brilliantly latched onto an exquisite pass from Steffen Yeates, beat Richard King and thundered the ball past shotstopper Jahmali Waite.
Yorke was jumping with joy on the touchlines, but that was short-lived as VAR overturned the strike for offside.
Three minutes later Yeates started a counterattack and released the ball to Tyrese Spicer, who snatched his opportunity to laughably send the ball high and wide of the target.
The Soca Warriors were rueing their missed chance two minutes later when, against the run of play, Sheffield Wednesday whizz-kid Bailey Cadamarteri broke his duck for the Boyz with aplomb.
Indecisive defending from Montego Bay United’s Josiah Trimmingham resulted in 20-year-old Cadamarteri latching onto Gregory Leigh’s headed pass to fire the bouncing ball past helpless keeper Denzil Smith.
Determined T&T immediately pushed for an equaliser, but Waite ably dealt with the danger from Garcia and Dante Sealy on the brink of the half-time whistle.
Yorke’s half-time talk sparked life into the Soca Warriors as they dominated the early exchanges, but Wayne Frederick II and Yeates were too wayward with their long-range shots.
Jamaica head coach Steve McClaren swiftly made changes as his side were clearly second best, by introducing Karoy Anderson and Kaheim Dixon on 53 minutes.
New faces leashed Boyz into life. The hosts took advantage of Henry’s poor headed clearance, which fell at the feet of Barnsley Town’s Jon Russell to find the bottom left corner and double their tally on 57 minutes.
Russell has become an unexpected source of goals for the Boyz, by bagging his fifth strike in 13 appearances, and showed the toothless strikers how to finish.
The Soca Warriors were swift to respond, and once more found the back of the net through Garcia. The stunned silence soon turned to cheers from the majority of supporters when VAR ruled out yet another T&T effort for offside.
Solid goalkeeping at each end denied Cadamarteri and T&T’s Nathaniel James from scoring. Yet apart from these efforts, the game became a midfield battle until a triple substitution from Yorke followed by McClaren unleashing Shamar Nicholson and Jahshaun Anglin for Jamaica’s goal scorers.
These changes made little difference to the mediocre quality of play, as the qualifier petered out into a drab final 20 minutes. The victory at least extended Jamaica’s unbeaten run against T& T to six matches.
The Boyz head Group B with back-to-back wins, having dispatched Bermuda last week, with six points. Curacao, who won a five-goal thriller against Bermuda, lie second on four points.
The Soca Warriors languish in third with just a point from their scoreless draw against Curacao, having failed to score in the World Cup qualifier campaign, with Bermuda propping up the table.
Jamaica were missing several pivotal players sidelined by injury, so the silky skills of winger Leon Bailey (thigh), Demarai Gray, shotstopper Andre Blake (knee), striker Bobby Decordova-Reid (muscle) and defender Joel Latibeaudiere (shoulder) should lift their standard for next month’s qualifiers at Curacao and at home to Bermuda.
JAMAICA: Waite – Leigh, Lowe, King, Lembikisa – Hayden, Russell (Anglin, 78) – Cephas (Holgate, 80), Palmer (Anderson, 53), Campbell (Dixon, 53) – Cadamarteri (Nicholson, 78). Subs: Chambers, Lambert, Topey, Antonio, Davis, Duncan, Webster
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