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• Dimitrio Andro's all-important strike gives Suriname's Robinhood edge over Ja's Cavalier in Caribbean Cup final

  A sensational second half strike from Dimitrio Andro earned Robinhood of Suriname a 1-0 victory over Jamaican side Cavalier in the first leg of the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Cup Final at the Dr. Ir. Franklin Essed Stadion in Paramaribo, on Thursday night.

  It was a fairly cagey start to the contest as both teams took their time to feel out each other, before Carlos Da Silva's 15th-minute header gradually broke the shackles for Robinhood.

  Cavalier heeded the danger and responded with a warning shot of their own through Shaquille Cairo 33rd-minute attempt.

  The Jamaican side upped the tempo after the interval and almost broke the deadlock in the 55th minute, but tournament-leading scorer Shaniel Thomas's effort went just wide.

  Minutes later Robinhood's goalkeeper Jonathan Fonkel was called upon to make a soaring save to deny Ronaldo Robinson.

  Just when it looked like Cavalier had the home side on the ropes and were set to break through, Robinhood turned the half on its head when they found the go-ahead goal in the 69th minute against the run of play. This, as Andro rifled a right-footed shot that lodged into the top right corner of net.

  Andro’s excellent strike made for a vibrant finish, with Robinhood buoyed by momentum, while Cavalier tried desperately but couldn't find the elusive equalizer.

  With that, the stage is set for what should be an explosive second leg inside Jamaica's National Stadium on December 6.

• World champs bronze medallist Sada Williams receives prestigious national honour from Barbados

  For her trailblazing exploits in track and field Sada Williams was on Thursday recognized by her home country of Barbados at their Independence Day National Honours ceremony.

  Williams, who turns 26 on Friday, is a back-to-back World Championship 400m bronze medallist and is the first Barbadian women to win a medal at a global championship. She won a bronze medal in the 400m at the 2022 World Championships in Eugene, Oregon and repeated the feat at the 2023 Championships in Budapest, Hungary in August. In so doing she became the first Barbadian athlete to win a global medal at consecutive championships.

  She also won the 400m at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England and took home a silver medal at the NACAC Championships that same year.

  For that and more, she was awarded The Gold Trident of Excellence Award in recognition of her outstanding achievements and dedicated service to her country. It was an honour to be appreciated, she said.

  “I feel very honoured to be recognized this year and last year and I am hoping to continue to do great things reach further,” said Williams who was attending the Independence Day Parade for the very first time.

• Gilbert backs Girlz to better Guatemala in decisive Group B contest after 1-1 stalemate with Panama leaves Gold Cup hopes hanging

  Jamaica's senior Reggae Girlz remain in a tough position to make next year’s Concacaf Women’s Gold Cup, despite coming from behind to secure a 1-1 stalemate with Panama in their penultimate qualifying fixture at the National Stadium on Wednesday.

  Marta Cox gave Panama a 31st-minute lead from the penalty spot, but that was cancelled out by Shaneil Buckley's 45th minute strike, which ensured the Jamaicans a share of the spoils.

  With the point, Panama inched up to seven points and booked their spot in the inaugural women's Gold Cup, while the Jamaicans, who were earning their second point, must beat second-placed Guatemala (four points) on Sunday to get into the Gold Cup prelims.

  Though disappointed that they didn't secure all three points on this occasion, interim Head coach Xavier Gilbert is backing his team to get by Guatemala on Sunday.

  "It was a competitive game, unfortunately things didn't go entirely according to plan, of course we wanted to win, but we also wanted to ensure that we didn't lose tonight, that was our first objective.  We are still in with a shot with just have to get the job done against Guatemala, in terms of speed and depth, we have a better unit and so I fancy our chances more against Guatemala," Gilbert said in a post-match interview.

  The contest started at a decent tempo with the Jamaicans using their pace and athleticism to exploit the wide channels, as they were more threatening in open play, but were unable to make the most of their half chances.

  In the ninth Melissa Johnson broke down the right channel and should have at least tested Yenith Bailey in goal for Panama, but the build-up was undone by indecision.

  Nine minutes later, Buckely broke down the right and played a pass inside, and Davia Richards couldn't connect at close range.

  Panama patiently played their game and went close in the 28th minute when Cox played a through pass in for Natalia Mills, but Serena Mensah, in goal for Jamaica, left her line well to avert the danger.

  However, the visitors were given the opportunity to break the deadlock when Lauren Reid seemingly got ball in a challenge on Mills, but Honduran referee Melissa Borjas Pastrana awarded the penalty, which Cox converted.

  The Reggae Girlz probe for the equalizer came on the stroke of half-time when a weighted cross from the left by Malikae Dayes was well finished by Buckley from close range.

  Gilbert's side again started purposeful and applied consistent pressure throughout but didn't really put anything meaningful on goal.

  In fact, there best effort of the stanza came in the 68th when Njeri Butts cross inside was skipped by captain Chinyelu Asher for Marlo Sweatman, whose shot lacked the power to beat Bailey.

  From there, but teams nullified each other, as their search for the winner proved fruitless.

  "I don't think we did anything wrong; we just didn't score. We have to score goals to win games and we just didn't get on the scoresheet when we got our chances," Gilbert said, as he also fielded questions about the substitutions.

  "We are in a different dynamic from the other teams. They are playing one game and they are finished, while we are playing two games in five days. I know what I am working with, we had to be smart in terms of our approach to each game, so we couldn't be erratic and make a number of substitutions here, I also understand the situation that we are in and we are just going to give it our all on Sunday," he declared.