Spann penalty sinks the Boyz

GUADALAJARA: Silvio Spann’s penalty broke a deadlock and gave Trinidad and Tobago a 2-1 win over rivals Jamaica, ending a disappointing regional Olympic qualifying for both teams on Friday. Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica were already eliminated from a shot at the Athens Olympics because of losses in their first two matches. The match was only four minutes old when TT forward Scott Sealey scored through a sluggish Jamaican defence, but it took Jamaica another 70 minutes to equalise through Keith Kelly. Five minutes later, Jamaica’s Garfield Reid tackled Jason Marcano inside the penalty box, setting up Spann’s shot, which bounced off the crossbar and behind goalkeeper Richard McCallum.
 
Marcano, listed as a goalkeeper, was substituted in during the second half as a forward, a position he has played for his home team. Costa Rica held a hard-charging Mexico to a 1-1 draw later on Friday to win Group “B” in the regional Olympic qualifying tournament. The match was a battle for playoff position in the two-group tournament of Under-23 teams. On Tuesday, the top team in each group plays the No 2 team from the other. The winners of those matches go to Athens following a largely symbolic championship match on Thursday. The United States and Honduras played yesterday to determine the winners of Group “A”. The winners gets the dubious prize of facing second-place Mexico with an Olympic berth at stake. Costa Rica struck first when Junior Diaz leapt above a pack of Mexican defenders to head in a corner kick by Pablo Brenes 7 minutes into the game. Luis Ernesto Perez tied the match for Mexico four minutes later, slicing the ball past Adrian De Lemos, who slipped lunging for it. It was the first goal De Lemos had allowed in three matches.

Before a noisy home crowd of almost 50,000 at Jalisco Stadium, Mexico controlled much of the tempo, pressing hard on defence and using a shifting series of offensive moves. But the defensive gaps that Mexico found in earlier matches against Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago were harder to come by against Costa Rica. Costa Rica won Group “B” on a one-goal difference over three matches. Both teams held back players —- Mexico four and Costa Rica three —— who had started in earlier matches. Mexican fans have reason to thirst for revenge against both Honduras and the United States. Honduras’ victory in the 2000 Olympic qualifying tournament kept Mexico out of the Sydney matches. The United States team knocked Mexico out of the 2002 World Cup.

LINEUPS:
JAMAICA: Richard McCallum, Omar Daley, Wayne Ellis, Demar Phillips, Christopher Harvey, Garfield Reid, Damion Williams, Tyrone Sawyers, Bradley Thomas, Nicholas Addlery (Keith Kelly 60), Khari Stephenson (Roland Dean 34).
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO: Jan Michael Williams, Kenwyne Jones, Ronald Primus, Anthony Noreiga, Kerry Baptiste, Nigel Daniel, Silvio Spann, Devon Caseman (Kern Thomas 77), Michael Lee Celestine, Kendall Davis (Clyde Leon 72), Scott Sealey (Jason Marcano 57).
REFEREE: Alex Prus (USA).