LAST weekend’s Hurricane Irene did not only wreak havoc on the U.S. coastline, but it also forced the cancellation of semi-finals of the 2011 Digicel (New York) Caribbean Cup football tournament, throwing the competition in a limbo.
Guyana were down to play Grenada while seven-time champions and cup holders Jamaica were billed to face St Kitts and Nevis last Sunday at the Thomas Jefferson playfield in Brooklyn.
Fans since midway the tournament had longed to see a Guyana/Jamaica finals, given the fact that for years the men from the ‘Land of Wood and Water’ had been dominating the event. For once the ‘Golden Jaguars’ emerged as the team that captivated the spectators this year with their display of the game.
The infusion of Howard Lowe, Abassi McPherson, Konata Manning, Devon Millington, and Kevin Beaton with the U.S.-based Guyanese proved to be a force to be reckoned with and while the thousands of fans who are expected to cram the venue will not see their dream final (Guyana/Jamaica), the situation of the day will make things just as intriguing.
Jamaica will play St Kitts in the opener while Guyana and Grenada will battle it in the nightcap, where the winner from both games will grab first place honours.
It’s only the second time in the tournament’s 20-year history that two teams will share a title – the first being at the inaugural event when Trinidad & Tobago and Jamaica were jointly named winners.
Tournament organisers say the day promises to be a “contrast of playing philosophies”, especially since it is expected that Jamaica will walk away with the win against St Kitts; the same team Guyana swamped 6-0 in the preliminarily round of the tournament.
Guyana and Grenada played each other in the group stages of the tournament and the outcome was a goalless draw.
The only thing separating the two teams is that Guyana are the only team in the tournament to concede a goal, and also scoring the most in the tournament (18) – 5-0 against T&T, the same against Antigua and Barbuda, 6-0 against St Kitts, and edging St Lucia 3-0, while Grenada allowed one goal but did not score as many.
With eight goals scored so far in the tournament, Beaton will be poised to keep his goal-scoring antics intact for this clash while Millington, the tournament’s second leading scorer (6) who has resorted to the role of being a playmaker, can prove to be the key to Guyana’s victory.
Another player, Nigel ‘Powers’ Codrington, is yet to score in the tournament, but his presence has always been felt and the Grenadian defenders are aware of his capabilities, some of which he displayed against them numerous times in his illustrious career with the Golden Jaguars.
Defensively, Guyana are the soundest of the teams in the competition, led by Lowe, the former National captain and McPherson; the eye-catching left back from Alpha United.
Jamaican-born England and Liverpool football legend John Barnes, will witness the day’s proceedings.
This year’s final also features the final of the Digicel Kick Start Clinics in which 150 aspiring young football players will battle it out under the tutoring of Barnes.
The Digicel Kick Start Clinics are part of Digicel’s soccer grassroots programme where the best three players from the clinics in New York will be chosen to travel to the elite Digicel Academy in Trinidad and Tobago where they will spend a week developing their skills and technical ability, as well as learning valuable life skills such as personal awareness and self-esteem – all through positive reinforcement, fostering an appreciation of football’s intrinsic values.