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<SPAN class=art-title2>Guatemala and St. Kitts step out</SPAN> <TABLE cellSpacing=5 cellPadding=5 width=150 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
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<SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Guatemala were in fine form with two wins at home over Belize and El Salvador.
</SPAN><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>Courtesy of CONCACAF
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<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">(FIFA.com)</SPAN> <SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">08 Aug 2006</SPAN>
<SPAN class=art-text>Head coach Antonio Garcia's Guatemala were named champions of the first Central American under-20 qualifying 'triangular' following an emphatic 6-1 win over neighbours and closest chasers El Salvador at the weekend.
After going a goal down, hosts Guatemala had to rally to turn the tables on El Salvador and they did so in spectacular fashion. Three goals from Marco Tulio Ciani combined with tallies from Minor Lopez, Jean Howell and substitute Cesar Gonon to see the favourites run out easy winners despite the early scare.
Things were complicated for El Salvador with the dismissal of two players, affecting their ability to stand up to a formidable attack from the home side.
Hat-trick hero Tulio Ciani was predictably pleased after the match. "We had to fight to get through but we always believed in ourselves and our football…and in the end we achieved our goal."
In their first match five days earlier, the Guatemalans had a similarly easy time of it as they thrashed Belize 5-0 at the same Estadio Mateo Florez in Guatemala City. And the fact that the five goals were spread throughout the team spoke volumes about the hosts' overall panache.
Minor Lopez, Marco Papa Ponce, Edgar Chinchilla, David Aroche and Jean Howell all scored in the shutout as the Central American powers set the stage for ultimate victory.
On the other side, El Salvador also took Belize to task with a 5-1 mauling on the strength of a two-goal performance from Jose Iglesias to reach the final.
The win means that Guatemala now book a spot in the final round of qualifying for Canada 2007, scheduled for next year in Panama and Mexico.
All about the Benjamin for St. Kitts
Meanwhile, in the Caribbean, tiny St. Kitts & Nevis came out on top at the Stade Alberic Richards in Cedex to book their place in the second and final round of island qualifying.
A 2-0 win over Antigua & Barbuda saw the side finish with a perfect nine points from three matches after wins over Dominica (2-0) and an opening-day hiding of St. Martin (9-1) in which Kervin Benjamin scored no less than four goals in a stunning display.
St. Kitts now join previous pre-qualifying winners Bermuda and the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago and two other first round group victors (still to be determined) in the Caribbean final round of qualifying. Three of the final eight Caribbean participants will progress to the CONCACAF final round next January.
Mexico and Panama will each host a four-team CONCACAF final round group next year, with the top two squads qualifying to the FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007.
Next weekend, the second Central American 'Triangular' will take place in Honduras, with the hosts joining Costa Rica and Nicaragua for a spot in in Panama and Mexico.
In the Caribbean, the next pre-qualifying group will take place in Surinam from 6 to 10 August and pit Aruba, Guyana, the Netherlands Antilles against the hosts.</SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<SPAN class=art-title2>Guatemala and St. Kitts step out</SPAN> <TABLE cellSpacing=5 cellPadding=5 width=150 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR class=paddingall><TD vAlign=top>
<SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Guatemala were in fine form with two wins at home over Belize and El Salvador.</SPAN><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>Courtesy of CONCACAF
</SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">(FIFA.com)</SPAN> <SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">08 Aug 2006</SPAN>
<SPAN class=art-text>Head coach Antonio Garcia's Guatemala were named champions of the first Central American under-20 qualifying 'triangular' following an emphatic 6-1 win over neighbours and closest chasers El Salvador at the weekend.
After going a goal down, hosts Guatemala had to rally to turn the tables on El Salvador and they did so in spectacular fashion. Three goals from Marco Tulio Ciani combined with tallies from Minor Lopez, Jean Howell and substitute Cesar Gonon to see the favourites run out easy winners despite the early scare.
Things were complicated for El Salvador with the dismissal of two players, affecting their ability to stand up to a formidable attack from the home side.
Hat-trick hero Tulio Ciani was predictably pleased after the match. "We had to fight to get through but we always believed in ourselves and our football…and in the end we achieved our goal."
In their first match five days earlier, the Guatemalans had a similarly easy time of it as they thrashed Belize 5-0 at the same Estadio Mateo Florez in Guatemala City. And the fact that the five goals were spread throughout the team spoke volumes about the hosts' overall panache.
Minor Lopez, Marco Papa Ponce, Edgar Chinchilla, David Aroche and Jean Howell all scored in the shutout as the Central American powers set the stage for ultimate victory.
On the other side, El Salvador also took Belize to task with a 5-1 mauling on the strength of a two-goal performance from Jose Iglesias to reach the final.
The win means that Guatemala now book a spot in the final round of qualifying for Canada 2007, scheduled for next year in Panama and Mexico.
All about the Benjamin for St. Kitts
Meanwhile, in the Caribbean, tiny St. Kitts & Nevis came out on top at the Stade Alberic Richards in Cedex to book their place in the second and final round of island qualifying.
A 2-0 win over Antigua & Barbuda saw the side finish with a perfect nine points from three matches after wins over Dominica (2-0) and an opening-day hiding of St. Martin (9-1) in which Kervin Benjamin scored no less than four goals in a stunning display.
St. Kitts now join previous pre-qualifying winners Bermuda and the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago and two other first round group victors (still to be determined) in the Caribbean final round of qualifying. Three of the final eight Caribbean participants will progress to the CONCACAF final round next January.
Mexico and Panama will each host a four-team CONCACAF final round group next year, with the top two squads qualifying to the FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007.
Next weekend, the second Central American 'Triangular' will take place in Honduras, with the hosts joining Costa Rica and Nicaragua for a spot in in Panama and Mexico.
In the Caribbean, the next pre-qualifying group will take place in Surinam from 6 to 10 August and pit Aruba, Guyana, the Netherlands Antilles against the hosts.</SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>