A late penalty from Jahmari Clarke saw Jamaica’s U-20 Reggae Boyz secure a 1-1 come-from-behind draw and share of the points against Costa Rica in Group D of the CONCACAF Under-20 Championships, in Honduras, on Saturday.
After a scoreless first half, which saw both teams unable to take advantage of limited opportunities to find the back of the net, Dorian Rodríguez gave Costa Rica the advantage with a well-placed header in the 58th minute.
The Jamaicans missed a golden opportunity to get back on level terms when Julián González brought down livewire substitute Chad James in the area. Duncan Mckenzie, however, missed the resulting penalty, with Costa Ria custodian Bayron Mora diving sharply to his left to stop the effort.
Los Ticos seemed destined for all three points but Andrey Salmerón’s 87th-minute shot came crashing back off the crossbar as the Jamaicans held on. In a hefty chunk of time added on, however, Clarke was wrestled to the ground by Brandon Calderón for another penalty. This time the forward did make use of the advantage, sending Mora the wrong way to bring the team back on level terms, only just seconds before the final whistle.
In the day’s other encounter, Cuba scored a 1-0 win over Canada in Group E. Kevin Martín got the winning goal in the 42nd minute.