… Guyana draw 1-1  with Guadeloupe
FORT DE FRANCE, Martinique, (CMC) – Luton Shelton led a first-half blitz with a brace that helped Jamaica thump Antigua & Barbuda 3-1, and start their defence of the Digicel Caribbean Cup in style on a wet and windy Saturday night.
The Vålerenga striker and New York Red Bulls forward Dane Richards scored in a 25-minute spell in the first half to virtually ensure the match was over as a genuine contest at halftime before Gason Gregory’s early strike in the second half gave the Antiguans false hope at the Riviere Pilote Stadium. In the opening match of a double-header, Dwain Jacobs scored in the last five minutes to cancel-out Loic Loval’s strike 15 minutes earlier, as Guyana drew with Guadeloupe 1-1.
But Jamaica’s entry into the competition took centre stage, since they did not have to endure the rigours of qualification, as defending champions.
The Jamaicans did not seem to intimidate their opponents until the 14th minute, when Richards set-up his striking partner, turning the ball into the path of Shelton, whose confident side-footed shot whizzed past Keita Decastro into the Antiguan net.
Richards had a chance to extend the Reggae Boyz’s lead five minutes later, when he lobbed the ball over the advancing Decastro, only to be railroaded by Antigua & Barbuda captain George Dublin.
Jamaica continued to stamp their class on the match, with their speed and passing of a high calibre, and were rewarded, when a long ball over the top from Shaun Francis allowed Shelton to race clear.
Confronted by Decastro coming off his line, Shelton cleverly cut back across the retreating defenders, and slotted the ball into the right corner to give Jamaica 2-0 lead after 37 minutes.
Three minutes later, Richards out-stepped the Antiguan defence, after they were again caught flat-footed, and his first-time stroke was unerring.
The Jamaicans were caught napping early in the second half, when Antigua & Barbuda appeared to have gained a lifeline from Gregory.
Coming on as a second half substitute, Gregory made an immediate impact, with a thunderous free-kick from 30 yards that flew past a bewildered Dwayne Miller in the Jamaican goal.
The Jamaicans came under siege from the Antiguans the rest of the way, but Miller made a daring, one-handed save in the 55th minute to stop Peter Byers, whose curling effort on the hour sailed wide.
The Reggae Boyz responded, with Richards breaking away five minutes later, and was too clever for his own good, blasting over the bar with only the ‘keeper to beat, after he literally left two defenders standing.
Jamaica absorbed the pressure for the remainder of the contest, which flowed equally between both ends of the field.
Earlier, Guyana earned a point, after Guadeloupe dominated, but suffered from wasteful finishing.
The Guyanese entered the match as the only side to have qualified from the preliminary round, and chose discretion as the best part of valour.
They soaked-up all of the pressure from the Guadeloupeans, and were fortunate that the scoreline remained 0-0 at half-time.
The Guyanese saw Guadeloupean front-man Livio Nabab fail to connect his header downward in the second minute, make the most of a one-on-one with Guyanese ‘keeper Ronson Williams in the 24th minute, and butt another past their shot-stopper in the closing minutes of the half.
In between, Williams also kept the Guyanese safe with a save, after Fabian Belson worked his way from the right touchline into a shot from almost point-blank rank.
The one-way traffic continued to come Guyana’s way, but Williams remained steadfast, even diviing full length to block a rasping free-kick from big Guadeloupe centre back Jean-Luc Lambourde in the 63rd minute.
The Guyanese net-minder was finally beaten in the 70th minute, when Julien Ictoi’s left-sided delivery eluded everyone, skidded off the wet surface, and Loval extended his long right leg, and steered the ball over the goal line in almost slow-motion fashion.
Guyana continued to come under pressure from Guadeloupe, with Cedric Collet’s volley being parried away by the acrobatic Williams, and they seemed to have given-up the ghost, when Lambourde tallied from Ictoi’s cross from the left, only for linesman Dion Neil to flag for a very contentious off-side call.
The Guyanese then stormed down field, and with their only shot-on-goal in the second half, Jacobs equalised from a long ball that caught the Guadeloupe defence out of place.
Group-I continues tomorrow, when Antigua & Barbuda face Guyana in the opener at the same venue, where Guadeloupe will also meet Jamaica.