8 months ago
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The Reggae Boyz needed a late penalty from Leon Bailey to spare their blushes as they held St Vincent and the Grenadines to a 1-1 draw yesterday in the first leg of the Concacaf Gold Cup Preliminary tie at the Arnos Vale Stadium in Kingstown, St Vincent.
St Vincent’s man of the moment Oalex Anderson scored the all-important goal in the 64th minute of play to the absolute delight of the home fans before Bailey got the equaliser in time added with the final kick of the game.
Many expected the first leg to be a formality for the Reggae Boyz and the opening minutes of the game followed that script as Jamaica crafted several opportunities at goal.
Defender Ethan Pinnock had the ball in the back of the St Vincent net in the fifth minute but the whistle was blown for a goal kick as the ball had crossed the goal line during the build-up play.
Shamar Nicholson was a bit too casual in front of goal when he was sent through by Leon Bailey in the 13th minute but his tame effort was denied by the Vincentian goalkeeper Lemus Christopher.
Sue-Lae McCalla was the next Reggae Boy to miss the target as he saw his opportunity in the 20th minute go abegging.
McCalla picked up a loose ball in the six-yard box from a corner delivery but his final effort was unusually off target as it sailed wide of the mark.
Two minutes later, Nicholson was too slow to react to a dangerous cross in the box off the boot of Dexter Lembikisa as another chance went to waste.
St Vincent would slowly begin to create an impression in the game and sought to hit on the counter as Cornelius Stewart bent a shot just wide of the far post in the 43rd minute.
ATTACKING INTENT
The Boyz would start the second half as they did the first with attacking intent but no end product as they failed to capitalise on their chances.
Lembikisa thought he had scored the opener for Jamaica when his low-driven effort from outside the box nestled in the back of the net.
The referee on the touchline ended his early celebrations, however, as she ruled out the goal as Bailey was adjudged to have interfered with the play from an offside position.
Anderson made the Boyz rue their missed chances as he capitalised on a poor touch from the defence to run through on goal and slip a ball past the outstretched hand of Andre Blake just past the hour mark.
Shocked by the goal, the Boyz went after the equaliser with Pinnock coming close with a point-blank header that ricocheted off the shoulder of Christopher in goal.
Second-half substitute Renaldo Cephas lifted the tempo of Jamaica’s attacks as his constant runs to the byline cause a number of problems for the Vincentian defence.
With just seconds left on the clock, the Boyz were handed a lifeline as they won a penalty which was dispatched by Bailey.
The result puts Jamaica in a tense scenario ahead of the second leg at Sabina Park on Tuesday as they will need a statement performance to ensure they qualify for the Concacaf Gold Cup scheduled to begin in June.
With the away goal rule still in effect for Concacaf competitions, they hold a slight advantage over St Vincent who will need a win in the return leg.
English (US) ·