Jamaica hit Bermuda for four in Concacaf Caribbean Women's Qualifier

Jamaica's senior Reggae Girlz were proficient in getting the job done with a 4-0 beating of Bermuda in their second final-round Concacaf Caribbean Women's Qualifier on Monday, as they virtually ensured themselves one of the three spots up for grabs.

The Girlz — who got their goals through the nippy Trudi Carter (17th), Captain Konya Plummer (32nd), leading scorer Khadija Shaw (61st), and 17-year-old Giselle Washington (90+1) — put in a dominant display that delighted those in attendance at the National Stadium.

The Hue Menzies-coached team could have won by a wider margin had it not been for faulty shooting, but despite that Assistant Coach Lorne Donaldson is not too concerned.

“I think tactically they (Bermuda) packed it in and made it difficult. I thought their 'keeper did very well and so I give them credit. I thought they played hard and we missed a few chances that normally we would have knocked home, but it is football; we give them credit for playing hard,” Donaldson told journalists at a post-game conference.

“I am sure we will miss some chances, but I don't think it is a concern that we are going to lose sleep over. It is just players' tendency: when they think they are going to win they get very relaxed and they are just not good around the goal, but I don't think it's a major concern for us,” he added.

Jamaica sit comfortably at the top of the five-team play-off on six points with a healthy aggregate of 13 goals from two games after previously beating Antigua and Barbuda 9-0. The Jamaicans are ahead of Cuba, who climbed into second following their 7-0 beating of Antigua and Barbuda in Monday's curtain-raiser.

The Cubans, who will meet Bermuda in a 7:00 pm feature today, have a superior goal average to Trinidad and Tobago, who are also on three points. The twin-island Republic is scheduled to meet Antigua and Barbuda at 4:00 pm.

The top-three finishers of the final round will qualify for the 2018 CONCACAF Women's Championship to be staged in the United States from October 4-17, where they will vie for a spot in the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup to be staged in France.

With the fairly easy part of their campaign now a thing of the past, Donaldson believes the quality of the Jamaican team will come to the fore even more with the two tougher contests in Trinidad and Tobago and Cuba to come.

“We think we have a good squad from number one to 20, so we trust all the players. So it is good to have the quality that we can rotate the players. I don't want to put it down to one or two players. I think we have a number of key players and even if we are missing a couple a players, I think we will still survive,” he noted.

The Jamaicans were more patient than they were in the first game as they took their time in orchestrating their build-ups in what was a delightful show of football which was very much appreciated by a crowd of approximately 650 individuals in attendance.

Their first look on goal came in the third minute when a cross from Giselle Washington was hit high by Ashleigh Shim, but that may have been a warning shot from the Reggae Girlz, who took complete control of the contest from there.

A minute later Khadija Shaw broke away and found herself in a one-on-one situation with custodian Micah Pond, but she took too long to get the shot off and was charged down by a recovering defender.

Jamaica continued to dictate the pace of the game and eventually found the go-ahead goal when Carter broke through the middle and was allowed too much space to get a left-footed shot off which rolled past custodian Micah Pond at her near post.

Shaw should have made it two-nil soon after but dragged her right-footed effort wide of the upright.

So dominant was the display from the Reggae Girlz that the Bermudians were only allowed two opportunities to break out of their defensive posture for the entire half.

The lead was inevitably extended two minutes past the half-hour mark when Plummer went on a solo effort from inside her own half before linking up with Shaw, who laid off a return pass for the skipper to comfortably tap in.

And the Bermudians would survive falling even further behind at the break as Shim's close-range effort just went wide after Carter's cross eluded defenders in the 43rd minute.

Bermuda showed some signs of life on the resumption when they pressed the Jamaicans into a defensive error, but Teyah Lindo's effort from a distance was nothing but speculative.

The momentum quickly shifted back in favour of the Girlz, who continued the probe to increase the tally by camping out in the opponent's quarters but their hunt was fruitless at that point.

Shaw, who was virtually a spectator for most of the game, eventually got on the scoresheet a minute past the hour mark, when she fired home from close range following some good work from Shim on the left channel.

And the striker brought the crowd to its feet when she had three bites of the cherry, including an acrobatic effort from deep inside the area in the 68th minute, but goaltender Pond proved equal to the task on all three occasions.

At the other end, Bermuda hung their head in despair after their two rare looks on goal in the 74th and 75th minutes, respectively, failed to beat the gloves of Sydney Schneider in goal for Jamaica.

Young Washington then capped off the victory with her second goal for the senior team when she thumped a right-footed effort home from the top of the box in time added.

Carter though was denied a second right before the whistle, as Pond who was caught well off her line, recovered well to tip the chip shot unto the cross bar and the ball bounced on the goal line, before rolling to safety.

Teams:

Jamaica— Sydney Schneider, Konya Plummer, Toriana Patterson, Dominique Bond-Flasza, Lauren Silver(Chantelle Swaby 79th), Marlo Sweatman, Giselle Washington, Chinyelu Asher, Khadija Shaw (Chyanne Dennis 69th), Trudi Carter, Ashleigh Shim(Sashana Campbell 64th)

Subs not used: Yazmeen Jamieson, Jadyn Matthews, Christina Chang, Allyson Swaby, Deneisha Blackwood

Booked: None

Bermuda— Micah Pond, Marley Christian, Trinae Edwards, K'Shaela Waldron Burch, Akeyla Furbert (Symira Darrell Lowe 66th), Deshae Darrell, Eva Frazzoni, Teyah Lindo, Taznae Fubler, Keunna Dill, Jade Stewart(Khyla Brangman 59th)

Subs not used: Chelsea Harvey, Ember Butterfield, Victoria Davis, Aaliyah Simons, Nia Christopher, Dazarre Place, Kennisha Nanette

Booked: Edwards (89th)

Referee: Lucila Venegas Montes (MEX)

Assistant referees: Heidy Magaly Nimatuj (GUA); Mayling Chavarria Rugama (NCA)

Fourth official: Sandra Benitez Arteaga (SLV)

Match Commissary: Andrea Thompson (CAY)

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