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Hodges treble delights coach Whitmore
Ian Burnett, with reggae boyz in Cayman
Saturday, June 27, 2009
GRAND CAYMAN, Cayman Islands - The efficient manner in which Jamaica delivered five goals against a Cayman All-Star team in 70 minutes of aborted play during a friendly game on Thursday night at the T E McField Sports Complex has pleased head coach Theodore Whitmore.
But despite the clear superiority of his team, Whitmore expressed concerns regarding the Reggae Boyz's defensive approach during the game played in heavy rain, coupled with lightning and thunder on an artificial surface which was waterlogged in certain areas.
Jamaica's Jerry Walters (foreground) on the dribble as Tom Elliott (right), captain of the Cayman All-Star team, backs away during Thursday night's friendly game played in pouring rain at the T E McField Sports Complex. Looking on at centre is Jamaica's three-goal hero Devon Hodges. Jamaica won 5-0.
"So far we played in patches tonight (Thursday night)... I guess the weather had a lot to do with the pitch, but overall a good performance from our team," Whitmore told reporters shortly after referee Nolan Foster called a halt to the game due to the increasing number of lightning strikes.
Led by a hat-trick from Rivoli United's Devon Hodges, Jamaica were up 5-0 when the game was called off. Ricardo Fuller and Keammar Daley were the other scorers.
Hodges put Jamaica ahead on 20 minutes when he tapped home easily at the back post after Tivoli Gardens' Navion Boyd did good work on the left flank to tee him up from a few metres out.
Four minutes later Fuller, who was substituted at the break, headed home powerfully from a left-sided corner from Bryan Bayliss.
But surprisingly, the Boyz were kept out for the remainder of the first half, thanks to a number of near misses, coupled with good saves by the opposition's goalkeeper James Joseph.
The pick of the Jamaican goals came in the 58th minute with a sweeping move, punctuated with crisp inter passing, patience and intelligent play, as the ball was moved from one side of the pitch to the other with the opposition chasing shadows.
After possessing the ball for well over a dozen passes, it was played to the defensive right flank to captain Damion Stewart, who played down the flank to Hodges, who relayed a pass to the overlapping Eric Vernon. The speedy Portmore United player darted into the penalty area where he pulled the ball back to Daley, who finished with aplomb.
A minute later Oraine Simpson, who had replaced Vernon after Daley's goal, won possession of the ball and in a lightning attack, the Tivoli Gardens man blasted the ball goalwards, only for Joseph to spill the effort and the lurking Hodges was on hand to tap home.
Those strikes impressed Whitmore. "Basically with how most of our goals were scored, the build-ups, getting wide and squaring, so I was most happy with that," he said.
Boyd was not on the scorecard, but Whitmore picked him out for special mention. "A good performance, I think he (Boyd) was the one who created a lot of these goals and to be honest he could have had a goal to cap off his play, but excellent performance."
And Whitmore, the 1998 France World Cup Finals two-goal hero, was also impressed with Hodges' capacity to get goals. "To be honest, Hodges reminds me of a Paul 'Tegat' Davis, we haven't seen a goalscorer/finisher like him for some time and that speaks well for us."
Still, the coaching staff was less impressed with the defensive play, particularly the co-ordination of the three central defenders.
"... (If) we play against better teams we are going to get punished," Whitmore said of his team's first half performance. "But in the second half we were a little bit better up to when the game was called off.
Five minutes from the end Hodges completed his triple when he rose high to head home from a Bayliss short corner.
The Boyz rested yesterday morning, but were back in training in the evening. Thursday's game marked the first of two for Jamaica on their one-week pre-Gold Cup training camp here, with the other being against the Cayman Islands national team coached by former Jamaican captain and head coach Carl Brown tomorrow at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex at 7:00 pm.
Teams: Jamaica - Duwayne Kerr (Dwayne Miller 46th), Damion Stewart, Desmond Breakenridge, Adrian Reid, Jerry Walters, Jason Morrison (Richard Edwards 46th), Eric Vernon (Oraine Simpson 59th), Bryan Bayliss, Navion Boyd, Ricardo Fuller (Keammar Daley 46th), Devon Hodges.
Subs not used: None
Booked: None
Cayman All-Star - James Joseph (Joseph Tatum 67th), Tom Elliott, Leon Whittaker, Chris Ordolis, Declan Cassidy, Victor Chicas, Arden Rivers, Richie Addison, Kemar Barton, Naheem Rodriquez, Richard Brown.
Subs not used: Chris Welcome, Neil Murray, Chris Douglas, Alfredo Challenger, Edgar Andino, Nahun Scott.
Booked: Elliott (37th), Brown (66th).
Referee: Nolan Foster
Assistant Referees: Francisco Coelho, Dave Howell
Fourth Official: William Petit
Ian Burnett, with reggae boyz in Cayman
Saturday, June 27, 2009
GRAND CAYMAN, Cayman Islands - The efficient manner in which Jamaica delivered five goals against a Cayman All-Star team in 70 minutes of aborted play during a friendly game on Thursday night at the T E McField Sports Complex has pleased head coach Theodore Whitmore.
But despite the clear superiority of his team, Whitmore expressed concerns regarding the Reggae Boyz's defensive approach during the game played in heavy rain, coupled with lightning and thunder on an artificial surface which was waterlogged in certain areas.
Jamaica's Jerry Walters (foreground) on the dribble as Tom Elliott (right), captain of the Cayman All-Star team, backs away during Thursday night's friendly game played in pouring rain at the T E McField Sports Complex. Looking on at centre is Jamaica's three-goal hero Devon Hodges. Jamaica won 5-0. "So far we played in patches tonight (Thursday night)... I guess the weather had a lot to do with the pitch, but overall a good performance from our team," Whitmore told reporters shortly after referee Nolan Foster called a halt to the game due to the increasing number of lightning strikes.
Led by a hat-trick from Rivoli United's Devon Hodges, Jamaica were up 5-0 when the game was called off. Ricardo Fuller and Keammar Daley were the other scorers.
Hodges put Jamaica ahead on 20 minutes when he tapped home easily at the back post after Tivoli Gardens' Navion Boyd did good work on the left flank to tee him up from a few metres out.
Four minutes later Fuller, who was substituted at the break, headed home powerfully from a left-sided corner from Bryan Bayliss.
But surprisingly, the Boyz were kept out for the remainder of the first half, thanks to a number of near misses, coupled with good saves by the opposition's goalkeeper James Joseph.
The pick of the Jamaican goals came in the 58th minute with a sweeping move, punctuated with crisp inter passing, patience and intelligent play, as the ball was moved from one side of the pitch to the other with the opposition chasing shadows.
After possessing the ball for well over a dozen passes, it was played to the defensive right flank to captain Damion Stewart, who played down the flank to Hodges, who relayed a pass to the overlapping Eric Vernon. The speedy Portmore United player darted into the penalty area where he pulled the ball back to Daley, who finished with aplomb.
A minute later Oraine Simpson, who had replaced Vernon after Daley's goal, won possession of the ball and in a lightning attack, the Tivoli Gardens man blasted the ball goalwards, only for Joseph to spill the effort and the lurking Hodges was on hand to tap home.
Those strikes impressed Whitmore. "Basically with how most of our goals were scored, the build-ups, getting wide and squaring, so I was most happy with that," he said.
Boyd was not on the scorecard, but Whitmore picked him out for special mention. "A good performance, I think he (Boyd) was the one who created a lot of these goals and to be honest he could have had a goal to cap off his play, but excellent performance."
And Whitmore, the 1998 France World Cup Finals two-goal hero, was also impressed with Hodges' capacity to get goals. "To be honest, Hodges reminds me of a Paul 'Tegat' Davis, we haven't seen a goalscorer/finisher like him for some time and that speaks well for us."
Still, the coaching staff was less impressed with the defensive play, particularly the co-ordination of the three central defenders.
"... (If) we play against better teams we are going to get punished," Whitmore said of his team's first half performance. "But in the second half we were a little bit better up to when the game was called off.
Five minutes from the end Hodges completed his triple when he rose high to head home from a Bayliss short corner.
The Boyz rested yesterday morning, but were back in training in the evening. Thursday's game marked the first of two for Jamaica on their one-week pre-Gold Cup training camp here, with the other being against the Cayman Islands national team coached by former Jamaican captain and head coach Carl Brown tomorrow at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex at 7:00 pm.
Teams: Jamaica - Duwayne Kerr (Dwayne Miller 46th), Damion Stewart, Desmond Breakenridge, Adrian Reid, Jerry Walters, Jason Morrison (Richard Edwards 46th), Eric Vernon (Oraine Simpson 59th), Bryan Bayliss, Navion Boyd, Ricardo Fuller (Keammar Daley 46th), Devon Hodges.
Subs not used: None
Booked: None
Cayman All-Star - James Joseph (Joseph Tatum 67th), Tom Elliott, Leon Whittaker, Chris Ordolis, Declan Cassidy, Victor Chicas, Arden Rivers, Richie Addison, Kemar Barton, Naheem Rodriquez, Richard Brown.
Subs not used: Chris Welcome, Neil Murray, Chris Douglas, Alfredo Challenger, Edgar Andino, Nahun Scott.
Booked: Elliott (37th), Brown (66th).
Referee: Nolan Foster
Assistant Referees: Francisco Coelho, Dave Howell
Fourth Official: William Petit