Action from Caribbean under-20 qualifier between St. Lucia (yellow jersey) and host Trinidad & Tobago on June 19, 2016, in Couva. (Photo: Caribbean Action Images)
COUVA, Trinidad & Tobago – Five squads earned places in the final round of Caribbean qualifying for the 2017 CONCACAF Under-20 Championship after three of the four first-round groups concluded play on Sunday.
Group winners Antigua & Barbuda, Trinidad & Tobago and St. Kitts & Nevis, plus St. Lucia and Cuba – a pair of sides that will ultimately finish among the top three runners-up – will join host Curacao in the eight-team, final-round to be contested October 21-30.
The remaining two berths will be decided following the six yet-to-be disputed Group 3 games. Haiti will host Anguilla, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands from June 29-July 3.
CONCACAF.com takes a look at the action:
Group 1 … Antigua & Barbuda clinched the group crown thanks to a 1-1 draw with Puerto Rico. Javorn Stevens (2’) gave the Antiguans an early 1-0 lead with his third goal of the competition. Jeimax Osorio (21’) levelled later in the first half for the Puerto Ricans … Cuba needed to defeat host St. Maarten to advance and did just that as Dariel Alejandro Morejon Rodriguez (68’, 80’) netted twice in a 5-0 win.
Group 2 … In a top-of-the table clash between two sides with perfect records, Trinidad & Tobago rallied for a 1-1 draw with visiting St. Lucia. The result was enough to give the host Soca Warriors the group title on goal difference (+12 to +3). Cassius Hudson (39’) gave St. Lucia a 1-0 lead in the first half, but T&T equalized through Isaiah Hudson (64’) after the break ... Yvann Macon (17’, 30’, 48) scored three goals in Guadeloupe’s 5-0 victory over Turks & Caicos Islands.
Group 4 … Three teams finished atop the top table with six points each … Tahir Hanley (72’) broke a 2-2 tie and extended his scoring streak to three straight games as St. Kitts & Nevis earned a 4-2 win over Dominica to capture first place on goal difference. After Gvann Amory (14’) and Steve Archibald (43’) gave St. Kitts a 2-0 halftime lead, Dominica stormed back to level on goals by Fitz Jolly (68’) and Dillon Augustine (70’) … Jamaica bounced back from a 2-0 loss to St. Kitts & Nevis, topping the Dominican Republic, 2-1. Despite the win, the Reggae Boyz were eliminated due to inferior goal difference (SKN +3, Dominican Republic +3, Jamaica 0). The Dominican Republic’s qualifying fate depends on the final Group 3 standings.
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2016 CARIBBEAN FOOTBALL UNION UNDER-20 QUALIFYING
June 15 – October 30, 2016
FIRST ROUND
GROUP 1 (Raoul Illidge Sports Complex – Philipsburg, St. Maarten)
Antigua & Barbuda 3-2-1-0-9-2-7
Cuba 3-2-0-1-8-3-6
Puerto Rico 3-1-1-1-11-3-4
St. Maarten 3-0-0-3-0-20-0
June 15, 2016
Antigua & Barbuda 2, Cuba 1
Javorn Stevens 15’, 24’ / Lazaro Yasmani Tuero Zannetto 41’
St. Maarten 0, Puerto Rico 9
Javier de la Rosa 3’, 47’; Jose Rodriguez 22’; Andre Rivera 45’+2; Jeimax Osorio 60’, 70’; Juan O’Neill 68’; Carmelo Carrillo 76’ pen, 84’
June 17, 2016
Cuba 2, Puerto Rico 1
Luis Javier Paradela Diaz 1; Yoan Humberto Godinez Fuentes 70’ / Nicolas Cardona 18’ pen
St. Maarten 0, Antigua & Barbuda 6
Jermaine Browne 27’; Vashami Allen 30’ pen; Denie Henry 49’, 51’; Luther Wildin 79’; Matthew Hall 90’+2
June 19, 2016
Puerto Rico 1, Antigua & Barbuda 1
Jeimax Osorio 21’ / Javorn Stevens 2’
St. Maarten 0, Cuba 5
Eduard Puga 7’; Lazaro Yasmani Tuero Zanetti 9’; Dariel Alejandro Morejon Rodriguez 68’, 80’; Yoan Humberto Godinez Fuentes 82’
GROUP 2 (Ato Boldon Stadium – Couva, Trinidad & Tobago)
Trinidad & Tobago 3-2-1-0-13-1-7
St. Lucia 3-2-1-0-4-1-7
Guadeloupe 3-1-0-2-5-2-3
Turks & Caicos Islands 3-0-0-3-0-18-0
June 15, 2016
Turks & Caicos Islands 0, St. Lucia 2
Antoine Wilfried 57’; Nyrone Winter 70’
Trinidad & Tobago 1, Guadeloupe 0
Jarred Dass 49’
June 17, 2016
St. Lucia 1, Guadeloupe 0
Ryi Maryat 47’
Trinidad & Tobago 11, Turks & Caicos Islands 0
Nicholas Dillon 11’, 29’, 49’, 62’, 65’; Isaiah Hudson 15’, 58’; Kierron Mason 46’; Noah Powder 51’; Micah Lansiquot 72’; Morgan Bruce-de Rouche 83’
June 19, 2016
Guadeloupe 5, Turks & Caicos Islands 0
Yvann Macon 17’, 30’, 48; Giovanni Dupalan 51’; Dimitri Bolivar 53’
Trinidad & Tobago 1, St. Lucia 1
Isaiah Hudson 64’ / Cassius Joseph 39’
GROUP 3 (Host: Stade Sylvio Cator – Port-au-Prince, Haiti)
June 29, 2016: Bermuda v Cayman Islands; Haiti v Anguilla
July 1, 2016: Cayman Islands v Anguilla; Haiti v Bermuda
July 3, 2016: Anguilla v Bermuda; Haiti v Cayman Islands
GROUP 4 (Estadio Panamericano – San Cristobal, Dominican Republic)
St. Kitts & Nevis 3-2-0-1-7-4-6
Dominican Republic 3-2-0-1-6-3-6
Jamaica 3-2-0-1-4-4-6
Dominica 3-0-0-3-3-9-0
June 15, 2016
Jamaica 2, Dominica 1
Shaman Nicholson 46’, 61’ / Zion Lander 24’
Dominican Republic 2, St. Kitts & Nevis 1
Manny Rodriguez 52’; Arismendy Jimenez 74’ / Tahir Hanley 42’
June 17, 2016
Jamaica 0, St. Kitts & Nevis 2
Tahir Hanley 60’, 83’
Dominican Republic 3, Dominica 0
Manny Rodriguez 62’; Victor Polanco 86’; Erick Paniagua 90’
June 19, 2016
St. Kitts & Nevis 4, Dominica 2
Gvanne Amory 14’; Steve Archibald 43’; Tahir Hanley 72’; Javier Sutton 77’ / Fitz Jolly 68’; Dillon Augustine 70’
Dominican Republic 1, Jamaica 2
Victor Polanco 86’ pen / Shamar Nicholson 19’; Nathaniel Adamolekun 41’
