IT wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t polished. But when the dust settled at PayPal Park on Friday night, Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz emerged with a hard-fought and absolutely vital 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Guadeloupe in their Concacaf Gold Cup Group C contest, as they kept their quarterfinal hopes alive.

Goals from Leon Bailey (41st) and Jonathan Russell (45+4) overturned an early lapse that allowed Thierry Ambrose (32nd) to give Guadeloupe a shock lead. But despite the final scoreline, the win did little to mask Jamaica’s glaring vulnerabilities, especially on the defensive end.

In fact, had it not been for goalkeeper Andre Blake, whose late-game heroics included a pair of clutch saves in added time, Jamaica might be sitting on a single point heading into their final group match against Panama on Tuesday. However, they now have three, the same as Guatemala, who were down 1-0 to Panama in the late contest.

The Boyz began the match with a bit more fluency and attacking rhythm than in their lacklustre opener against Guatemala.

Leon Bailey was electric early, twice denied by the woodwork—first in the 20th minute after he burst past his marker and got a shot past the advancing Guadeloupean keeper Brice Cognard, only to see his shot cannon off the upright. Four minutes later, he spotted Brice Cognard off his line and attempted an audacious chip from a distance, only to be denied again, this time by the crossbar.

But just as Jamaica looked to be finding their groove, disaster struck.

In the 32nd minute, Amari’i Bell conceded a needless corner, and Guadeloupe executed quickly and caught the Jamaican defence flat-footed. Ambrose got on the end of the slick passes and lashed a right-footed shot beyond Blake to give the French-speaking island a lead completely against the run of play.

To their credit, the Reggae Boyz responded with urgency. In the 41st minute, youngster Warner Brown played a crisp pass across the top of the area for Bailey, who made no mistake this time, as he stroked a low shot into the far corner to pull Jamaica level.

Moments before the halftime whistle, Demarai Gray showed his class as he weaved past his marker on the left flank and delivered a delightful cross for Russell to rise and nod home from six yards, completing the turnaround.

If the first half was lively and promising for Jamaica, the second was anything but.

Jamaica’s cohesion unraveled. Sloppy passing, questionable decision-making, and a disjointed midfield saw them absorb relentless pressure. Guadeloupe, despite being the underdog, outshot the Boyz 15 to seven, a stat line that reflected how much they dominated the latter stages.

In the 90+1 minute, Guadeloupe nearly found the equaliser. Substitute Ange Plumain found space in the six-yard box and fired from close range, only for Blake to make a stunning point-blank save. Two minutes later, Plumain again threatened and headed home what seemed to be a dramatic equaliser, but the goal was ruled out for offside.

And still, the danger was not over, as the Boyz failed to put the game to bed in 90+7. A long ball from the back was headed on by Kaheim Dixon, sending Renaldo Cephas on his way, but he selfishly tried to score under pressure instead of passing to an open Michail Antonio.

That decision almost proved costly, as in the 90+8, Florian Davide found himself unmarked at the heart of the Jamaican penalty area. But once again, Blake stood tall as he raced off his line to smother the shot and preserve the three points. (Sportsmax)