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Reggae Boyz in must-win game
Need to beat Haiti to have a chance of advancing
Sunday, October 01, 2006
STILL smarting from Friday's surprise 2-1 defeat by St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), defending champions Jamaica will have it all to play for when they square off against Group D leaders Haiti in Digicel Caribbean Cup action at the National Stadium this evening at 6:00.
The Reggae Boyz, who are second in the group with a +3 goal difference compared with third-placed SVG with -3, need to beat the Haitians to at least guarantee themselves a chance to advance to the next phase.
SVG take on bottom of the table St Lucia in the 4 o'clock curtain-raiser.
Jamaica's Fabian Dawkins (left) in a foot race with his St Vincent and the Grenadines opponent during action from their Digicel Caribbean Cup encounter at the National Stadium on Friday night. St Vincent and the Grenadines won 2-1. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)
Interim head coach of the national team Carl Brown told the Sunday Observer that he is not worried about facing Haiti, who, incidentally, scored 11 goals and conceded only one to top the group with maximum six points.
"I believe it might be much easier than if we played St Lucia," Brown said.
The man who was a member of the coaching staff, which guided Jamaica to the 1998 World Cup Finals in France, continued. "The Haitian team is going to motivate the (Jamaica) players, they have to win this game and it is not really tough as a coach to get them motivated. This is an opportunity for them to lift themselves and to demonstrate that they can compete with the best in the Caribbean," a confident Brown noted.
On the other hand, Haitian coach Carlo Marcellin told journalists that he will not be taking this evening's clash against the Reggae Boyz lightly, despite being in the dominant position.
"The objective was to quality for the next round, that objective has been reached. We are here to play three games, and we want to win all three games," Marcellin said.
Brown is confident that the Reggae Boyz will come good this evening. "Our responsibility now is to go out there and beat the Haitians, I believe we are still capable of doing that and that is what we plan to do," Brown stated.
The possibility exist that there could be a three-way tie for the two qualifying spots. This will occur if Jamaica beat Haiti and SVG beat St Lucia. If that were to happen (in accordance with CONCACAF rules) the manner in which teams will advance to the next round will be resolved at follows:
A - The result of head-to-head competition between the tied teams (where applicable);
B - The greatest difference between goals for and goals against from all group matches;
C - The team having scored the most goals from all group matches.
D - Failing this, the qualified team shall be determined by a drawing of lots carried out by the Executive Committee.
The top two teams will progress to the second round of the competition set for November at venues to be announced, with the winners from that round moving into the final phase in Trinidad and Tobago from January 13 to February 11, 2007.
Nine teams have already qualified for the second round - Guadeloupe, Martinique, Cuba, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Barbados, Antigua-Barbuda, Guyana and Suriname.
Need to beat Haiti to have a chance of advancing
Sunday, October 01, 2006
STILL smarting from Friday's surprise 2-1 defeat by St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), defending champions Jamaica will have it all to play for when they square off against Group D leaders Haiti in Digicel Caribbean Cup action at the National Stadium this evening at 6:00.
The Reggae Boyz, who are second in the group with a +3 goal difference compared with third-placed SVG with -3, need to beat the Haitians to at least guarantee themselves a chance to advance to the next phase.
SVG take on bottom of the table St Lucia in the 4 o'clock curtain-raiser.
Jamaica's Fabian Dawkins (left) in a foot race with his St Vincent and the Grenadines opponent during action from their Digicel Caribbean Cup encounter at the National Stadium on Friday night. St Vincent and the Grenadines won 2-1. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)
Interim head coach of the national team Carl Brown told the Sunday Observer that he is not worried about facing Haiti, who, incidentally, scored 11 goals and conceded only one to top the group with maximum six points.
"I believe it might be much easier than if we played St Lucia," Brown said.
The man who was a member of the coaching staff, which guided Jamaica to the 1998 World Cup Finals in France, continued. "The Haitian team is going to motivate the (Jamaica) players, they have to win this game and it is not really tough as a coach to get them motivated. This is an opportunity for them to lift themselves and to demonstrate that they can compete with the best in the Caribbean," a confident Brown noted.
On the other hand, Haitian coach Carlo Marcellin told journalists that he will not be taking this evening's clash against the Reggae Boyz lightly, despite being in the dominant position.
"The objective was to quality for the next round, that objective has been reached. We are here to play three games, and we want to win all three games," Marcellin said.
Brown is confident that the Reggae Boyz will come good this evening. "Our responsibility now is to go out there and beat the Haitians, I believe we are still capable of doing that and that is what we plan to do," Brown stated.
The possibility exist that there could be a three-way tie for the two qualifying spots. This will occur if Jamaica beat Haiti and SVG beat St Lucia. If that were to happen (in accordance with CONCACAF rules) the manner in which teams will advance to the next round will be resolved at follows:
A - The result of head-to-head competition between the tied teams (where applicable);
B - The greatest difference between goals for and goals against from all group matches;
C - The team having scored the most goals from all group matches.
D - Failing this, the qualified team shall be determined by a drawing of lots carried out by the Executive Committee.
The top two teams will progress to the second round of the competition set for November at venues to be announced, with the winners from that round moving into the final phase in Trinidad and Tobago from January 13 to February 11, 2007.
Nine teams have already qualified for the second round - Guadeloupe, Martinique, Cuba, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Barbados, Antigua-Barbuda, Guyana and Suriname.
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