DEFENDING champions Jamaica have set up a clash against an impressive Haiti outfit in Sunday’s final of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Under-14 Boys Tier 1 Challenge Series in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, after beating Bermuda 1-0 in the semi-final on Friday. The Jamaicans extended their streak of not conceding a goal to four games. The young Reggae Boyz had won their three first-round games by a combined 7-0 margin.
Haiti advanced after a 6-1 routing of hosts Dominican Republic in the other semi-final. Jamaica Head Coach Vassell Reynolds said they are well aware of the threat they pose. “The Haitians, I thought, were the team to beat from the second day of competition.
They are a very good team, technically and physically, but we are always confident in our abilities,” he told the Jamaica Observer. Reynolds said the young Reggae Boyz have what it takes to defend the title. “The fact that the team shows improvement is enough for us to feel confident of doing well in the finals.
Nevertheless, we may need to play our best game — or close to our best game — to get the result we desire. We will sit and put a plan together and hope the players can execute to the best of their abilities.” The Jamaicans are coming off a tough semi-final game against a disciplined Bermuda outfit. Reynolds said they had expected the struggle.
“After watching them and looking at their stats we thought they would pose a good challenge — and that they did. There were a couple of good goalscoring opportunities that we should have taken but failed to do so, and that made the game the a little more difficult for us,” he noted. The winning goal came two minutes into the second half from the in form Tai-Sean Headley.
He headed home from just inside the six-yard box after connecting with a looping ball in the 37th minute.
Summary from source