Sunday, September 4, 2011

CONCACAF Results and Highlights

Here are the results for the first match day for CONCACAF's round two. These games are often not televised, so apologies for the lack of highlights from some games.

Group A

Suriname 1 Cayman Islands 0

Suriname played to a sluggish victory in its opening game, although they may be disappointed they did not win by more. The lone goal was scored early on, a 11th minute penalty by Frisco Mando. Cayman Islands, possibly the weakest side in group A, put in a solid performance against the stronger Suriname.

El Salvador 3 Dominican Republic 2


Rodolfo Zelaya had two goals, including the eventual game-winner, as El Salvador survived a late scare to beat the Dominican Republic.

After a scoreless first half, the match sprung to life in the 54th minute when Zelaya struck for his first tally. Ten minutes later it appeared the Salvadoreans wrapped up the three points after Christian Bautista put one past the keeper.

However, it took only two minutes for the Dominicans to answer back through Jhoan Cruz. Zelaya added his second on a penalty in the 78th to restore El Salvador's two-goal advantage. Domingo Peralta pulled one back in the 90th, but it was too little, too late for the Dominican Republic.



Group B


Trinidad and Tobago 1 Bermuda 0

Captain Kenwyne Jones scored on a volley in the last minute of the first half to lead Trinidad and Tobago to a 1-0 win over a pesky Bermuda side. Bermuda, who defeated Trinidad and Tobago away in 2010 qualifying, defended well and were unlucky to fail to gain a point from the match.

Despite holding the majority of possession, T&T lacked the ability to create scoring chances. Bermuda will grow in confidence following this result, while Trinidad and Tobago knows they need to improve if they want to top the group.



Guyana 2 Barbados 0

A goal in either half saw potential group B spoiler Guyana get off to a positive start with a 2-0 triumph against Barbados. Shawn Beveny beat the offside trap in the 25h minute to put Guyana up. Charles Pollard then made sure of the win with a goal in the 75th minute.

Guyana now travels to Bermuda with high hopes of gaining six points from its opening two games. Barbados looks to rebound at home to Trinidad and Tobago after a rather sluggish performance.

Group C

Dominica 0 Nicaragua 2

Nicaragua upset Dominica 2-0 on the road to get its campaign of to a flying start. The Nicaraguans scored in the first minute through Raul Leguias. A half hour later, the away side doubled its lead thanks to a Felix Rodriguez goal.

Dominica now has a month to rebound from its disappointing opening in this three team group. Meanwhile, Nicaragua will try to ride its momentum gained when they host favorite and Central American rival Panama on Tuesday.

Group D

Canada 4 Saint Lucia 1

Canada survived an early scare to pick up a 4-1 opening victory thanks to three second half goals. Josh Simpson had two goals in the game.

Simpson opened the scoring in the sixth minute, scoring after his shot was deflected into the corner of the net. Just a minute later Saint Lucia struck back thanks to a Tremain Paul strike from distance. Saint Lucia held out until halftime and had hopes of pulling off a shock.

However, Dwayne De Rosario, Simpson and Will Johnson all scored in the latter half as Canada's quality eventually showed through. The Canadians now travel to Puerto Rico while Saint Lucia will host Saint Kitts and Nevis.



Saint Kitts and Nevis 0 Puerto Rico 0

In a result that benefits neither side, Saint Kitts and Nevis and Puerto Rico played to a 0-0 draw. Both teams squandered several chances in an otherwise uneventful match. SKN grew in quality in the second half and were the better side, but could not tally a goal.

Group E


Grenada 0 Belize 3


In the most shocking result of qualifying so far, Belize shocked Grenada with a comfortably 3-0 away win. Deon McCauley continued his fine goal-scoring form for his country, scoring a brace in the match.

McCauley, who scored four goals in two matches against Montserrat in round one, struck in the 11th minute to give the underdogs the advantage. Harrison Róches added the second in the 35th minute and McCauley put the game out of reach in the 79th.

Belize will try to continue its great start at home against neighbor Guatemala while Grenada tries to get back on track with a road game at Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Guatemala 4 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 0

Combined with Grenada's shocking defeat, Guatemala should feel hugely confident of winning group E after its comfortable 4-0 win.

Two goals in each half by the Guatemalans showed their superior quality over Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Star man Marco Pappa opened the scoring in the 16th minute. A 30th minute goal by Yony Flores extended the side's lead before the break.

Mario Rodriguez and Freddy Garcia were on the mark in the second half for Guatemala. They now travel to Belize where a win would give them a huge advantage in the group.

Group F

Haiti 6 U.S. Virgin Islands 0

Haiti demonstrated its superior quality against the amateurs from the U.S. Virgin Islands in a 6-0 win.

The game was never in doubt for the Haitians and they had five different players on target. James Marcelin opened Haiti's account in the 19th minute and the rout was on.

Jean Alexandre scored the fifth and sixth goals for Haiti, who are the favorites in group F. Ricardo Pierre-Louis, Jean-Eudes Maurice and Jean Monuma were the other goal-scorers for the home side.

Antigua and Barbuda 5 Curaçao 2


Curaçao took a surprising lead through Rihairo Meulens in the ninth minute, and an upset may have been on the cards for the nation playing its first official FIFA international. However, Anitgua and Barbuda took control of the game with three straight goals.

Marc Joseph tied the match at one in the 30th, and 10 minutes later Quinton Griffith gave the home side the lead. Tamarely Thomas put one in the back of the net in the 55th to ease Antigua and Barbuda's fears.

Richmar Siberie pulled one back for Curaçao in the 71st to make the score 3-2. However, the home nation responded well with two straight goals by Peter Byers.

Anitgua and Barbuda travel to the U.S. Virgin Islands on Tuesday while Curaçao will host Haiti.

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