Under-23s wilt against Mexico

GUADALAJARA: Defender Mario Perez launched Mexico into the lead in a dominating 3-1 victory over Trinidad and Tobago on Monday in the opening of regional Olympic football qualifying matches. Costa Rica also won, with two goals from Roy Myrie, in a 3-0 triumph over Jamaica. Only two of the eight teams in the tournament for the North and Central American and Caribbean region will advance to the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Mexico seemed more skilled and inventive from the start of their match, but a goal by Devon Mitchell at 18 minutes put Trinidad and Tobago ahead, stunning the crowd at Jalisco Stadium in Mexico’s second-largest city.

Mexican attackers pestered and pelted opposing goalkeeper Daurance Williams with scores of shots throughout the night — crosses, drives, multiple passes in front of his net. But the visitors held a lead until Ismael Rodriguez tapped a ball into the goal while Williams was tangled up with one of his own defenders on the ground in the 43rd minute. Perez put Mexico ahead at 60 minutes, charging in from the left side to slip the ball past the goalie. Mexico’s dominance grew as the game went on and players from Trinidad and Tobago repeatedly wilted to the turf with exhaustion or cramps in the 1,500-metre (5,000-foot) altitude. Juan Carlos Cacho scored a final blow off of a pass from Diego Martinez in the final minute of injury time. Yesterday in suburban Zapopan, the United States starts play against Panama while Canada meets Honduras.

In the first match of the night, a stumble by Jamaica’s Simeon Howell left Myrie unguarded about 15 metres (yards) out from the Jamaican goal and he knocked a shot past goalkeeper Richard McCallum 68 minutes into the match. Five minutes later, against an deteriorating Jamaican defence, Myrie scored off a pass inside the goal box. After a sloppy start, both Costa Rica and Jamaica started to mount threats around halftime — but the Central Americans steadily asserted dominance. Costa Rica began to find routes through Jamaica’s defensive wall — paths that began to look like highways as the Caribbean team seemed to tire at the same time it shifted to a more offensive style in an effort to catch up. Costa Rica scored a final goal in penalty time as Alvaro Saborio fired a shot that bounced off McCallum to Leonardo Araya, who blasted the ball home. McCallum repeatedly made diving, leaping saves and was fortunate at 63 minutes when the ball bounced around the goal box between attackers and defenders before it was finally cleared.

LINEUPS:
MEXICO: Jesus Corona, Aaron Galindo, Diego Martinez, Mario Perez, Francisco Rodriguez, Juan Pablo Garcia (Omar Moniarez 76), Luis Perez, Rafael Marquez Lugo (Juan Carlos Cacho 77), Sergio Ponce (Luis Sandoval 37), Ismael Iniguez and Ismael Rodriguez.
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO: Daurance Williams, Nigel Daniel, Ronald Primus, Kenwyne Jones, Lyndow Diaz, Anthony Noreiga (Kendal Davis 55), Silvio Spawn, Josh Johnson (Scott Sealey 45), Clyde Leon, Kerry Baptiste (Michael Lee Celestine 66) and Devon Mitchel.
REFEREE: Victor Stewart (Jamaica).

COSTA RICA: Adrian De Lemos, Pablo Salazar, Michael Umana, Jose Luis Lopez, Pablo Brenes, Jose Villalobos, Junior Diaz (Leonardo Araya 89), Carlos Hernandez (Warren Granados 62), Alvaro Saborio, Roy Myrie and Winston Parks (Erick Scott 45).
 JAMAICA: Richard McCallum, Roland Dean, Christopher Harvey, Garfield Reid, Desmon Breakenridge (Christopher Nicholas 70), Tyron Sawyers, Bradley Thomas, Shaver Thomas, Simeon Howell, Omar Daley (Keith Kelly 59) and Nicholas Addlery (Demar Phillips 75).
REFEREE: Neal Brizan (Trinidad and Tobago).