Bermuda suffer heavy loss to Haiti

Colin Thompson

Published Nov 3, 2018 at 9:26 pm (Updated Nov 3, 2018 at 9:27 pm)

In the huddle: Bermuda Under-20 players share a final word before their game against Haiti (Photograph by Crenstant Williams)

Bermuda 0 Haiti 4

Bermuda suffered their second straight defeat at the Concacaf Under-20 Championship against Haiti in their second group match at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, today.

Coach Ray Jones’s side went into the match keen to rebound from a 5-0 defeat against top seeds Costa Rica in their opener on Thursday but once again paid the price for poor defending.

Nael Elysee, the Haiti striker, opened the scoring in the eleventh minute when he headed in an inswinging cross despite being flanked either side by Bermuda defenders who failed to react.

Elysee added a second in the 43rd minute when his low shot from a neat pullback beat Quinaceo Hunt, the Bermuda goalkeeper, at the near post.

Bicou Bissainthe, the Haiti defender, then put the match beyond reach with a penalty after San-Tze Burgess, the Bermuda left back, caught midfielder Dean Jean with a late tackle.

Antonio Borgelin, who came on as an 83rd-minute substitute, completed the rout when he tapped into an empty net after Hunt failed to deal with a cross after coming off his line.

Bermuda have yet to score at the tournament and on this occasion failed to register a single shot on target, with Hunt once again making a string of saves against the rampant Haitians.

Frustration again took its toll with Mical Hardtman, Diego Richardson, Tai Williams and Burgess all being booked.

Bermuda return to action against St Lucia on Wednesday before closing out their group with a match against Barbados on Friday.

The top team from the group will advance to the second round of two groups of three, which starts on November 13. The second-round group winners will play in the final on November 21.

Unlike previous tournaments, which included regional qualifiers in the Caribbean and Central America and one final championship, the championships provide more top-level competition, with the top four finishers advancing to the Under-20 World Cup in Poland in 2019.

Bermuda made their first appearance at the under-20 championship during the previous tournament hosted by Costa Rica last year, which was the final qualifying stage for the Under-20 World Cup in South Korea.

TEAMS

Bermuda (4-4-2): Q Hunt — S Burgess, J Dublin (sub: D Wainwright, 67 mins), L Smith (sub: D Richardson, 46min), M Hardtman — A Burgess, Z Burgess, J Furbert, K Scott — T Williams, R Smith-Jones (sub: C Booth, 80). Substitutes not used: Y Williams, E Moore, A McDowall, J Sealey, N Spence. Booked: Hardtman, S Burgess, Richardson, Williams

Haiti (4-5-1): J Duverger — D Pierre, B Bissainthe, P Louis, B Clerger — V Etienne, D Jean (sub: A Bargelin, 83 mins, D Jacques (sub, M Santos, 56) F Christophe, D Clerveau — N Elysse (sub: R Damus, 77). Substitutes not used:

D Benoit, F Dulysse, M Fede, H Joseph, K Charleston, M Pierre, S Saint-Duc. Booked: Jacques

Referee: M Matamoros (Honduras)

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