Jamaica’s Reggae Girlz endured a tough return to international action as they turned in a sub-par performance that saw them soundly beaten 3-0 by Mexico in their opening friendly at CPKC Stadium on Saturday.
From the opening whistle, it was clear which side had come to play. Mexico dominated all areas of the pitch—possession, tempo, and creativity—and within the first 40 minutes, the scoreboard reflected their superiority. Goals from Alexia Delgado (23rd), Christina Burkenroad (32nd), and Rebeca Bernal (37th) all but settled the match before the half-time whistle.
For the Reggae Girlz, it was a night to forget.
Coming off a four-match winning run after two-match friendly sweeps of South Africa and Peru, respectively, the Reggae Girlz were hoping to continue that momentum against a more high-profile opponent. Instead, they looked sluggish, disjointed, and struggled to find any rhythm against a well-organized and hungry Mexican side.
Jamaica managed just four shots, only two on target, compared to Mexico’s 21 shots, with eight troubling Rebecca Spencer in goal. It wasn’t just the shot count—it was the flow, the confidence, and the cohesion that separated the two teams.
Mexico’s first goal came after sustained pressure. Nicolette Hernandez provided the assist to Delgado, who buried her effort.
Nine minutes later, Lizbeth Ovalle delivered the first of her two assists as she picked out Burkenroad, who slotted home with ease.
Ovalle was at it again minutes later, serving up another assist, this time to Bernal, who made no mistakes. It was a devastating 15-minute spell that left the Reggae Girlz shell-shocked.
The Girlz midfield was unable to contain Mexico’s fluid passing game, and the backline often found itself stretched. The attack also failed to really find their groove and was toothless in transition. Still, there were moments of individual promise and brief spells of pressure, but they never materialized into anything substantial.
However, head coach Hubert Busby and his staff will be hoping for a much better display when the teams meet again in Houston on Tuesday.
Assistant coach Deon Burton declared that much.
"Obviously, we're going to go back and look at the tape and see where we made mistakes and obviously try and learn from them and try to nullify them in the second game. That's all we can do. So we can. We learn from our mistakes, and we move on," Burton said post-match.
"We all agreed that we were a little bit off it in some areas of the game, so everyone held their hands up and took responsibility for individual areas. But like I said, it's a learning experience, and we move on to the next game. We're halfway through the tour, and we go again Tuesday evening, and we'll be ready to go in Houston," he added.