ARLINGTON, Texas - Jamaica is on course to make their fourth consecutive Concacaf Gold Cup semifinals appearance as they prepare to take on the United States on Sunday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
Part of the success for the Reggae Boyz in this edition of the competition has been the involvement of their younger contributors. All four of Jamaica’s goals in the group stage came from players under the age of 30.
Shamar Nicholson, at 24-years-old, continues to rise as one of the consistent scorers for his nation. After scoring his first international goal three years ago in a friendly against the U.S., Nicholson went on to add two goals at the 2019 Gold Cup and four in the 2019-20 Concacaf Nations League.
Nicholson is the youngest Jamaican player to score in the U.S. vs. Jamaica series. He scored the only goal for the Reggae Boyz in the 3-1 semifinal defeat three years ago.
It only took six minutes for Nicholson to open the scoring for Jamaica at this year’s Gold Cup. It ended as the game winner against Suriname in their first group match.
Bobby Decordova-Reid scored the second goal against Suriname. It was the 28-year-old forward’s first Gold Cup goal and second with Jamaica.
Another player getting his first Gold Cup goal with Jamaica was 29-year-old Cory Burke. His previous six goals came in the Caribbean Cup and in 2019–20 CONCACAF Nations League qualifying.
Burke scored the equalizer against Guadeloupe in the 14th minute of Jamaica’s second group match. Then 25-year-old Junior Flemmings would go on to score the game winner in the 87th minute for the 2-1 win.
Three of the four goals for Jamaica have come in the second half and two have occurred within the first 15 minutes. That makes the Reggae Boyz a threat early and a team to expect a victory from when they can get going offensively.
