Trinidad and Tobago’s Miscellaneous Police FC registered their first win of the Concacaf Caribbean Cup and kept their semi-final hopes alive after they bettered Jamaican outfit Arnett Gardens 2-1 in a lively Group A clash at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain on Thursday.
Joevin Jones (47th) and Ezekiel Kesar (84th) did the damage for Police FC, while Warner Brown (49th) got the ‘Junglists’ strike.
With the win, Police FC jumped to third on four points, the same as second-placed Haitian outfit Real Hope, but with a slightly inferior goal difference. Jamaica’s Cavalier remain atop on six points, while their compatriots Mount Pleasant FA (three points) and Arnett Gardens (zero point) complete the five-team standing.
With both teams coming off losses and hunting their first win, it was always expected to be an intriguing encounter, and fans that turned out at the venue were not disappointed.
Kimani Arbouine proved a menace for Arnett Gardens in the early exchanges as he unleashed a stinging 10th-minute effort that rocketed off the left upright.
Police also displayed their attacking prowess, led by veteran Kevon Woodley, who rose above defenders in the 32nd minute, but the lanky striker’s header came back off the crossbar.
Arbouine was at it again in the 36th minute as he sidewined his way into the danger area, but his well-struck effort failed to beat the right upright on this occasion as the score remained goalless at the break.
Police showed more purpose on the resumption and eventually broke the deadlock two minutes in when Jones fired home from just inside the arc as Richard White in goal for Arnett Gardens had no chance.
Brown pulled Arnett Gardens level seven minutes later with a calm right-footed finish, which left Police’s custodian Adrian Foncette flat-footed.
Try as they did, Arnett Gardens failed in the probe to add to their tally, and it was Police FC that had the last say.
This, as Kesar found the winner when he pounced on a rebound and slotted past White, who blocked an initial attempt.
Police FC will now be aiming to take the scalp of Mount Pleasant FA in its final group contest next Thursday and hope other results fall in their favour to secure a top two finish.
Meanwhile, having lost their first two games, Arnett Gardens face an uphill task to make the semi-finals, as they would have to win their next two encounters handsomely, while hoping others above them stumble. They will cross swords with Real Hope at the National Stadium next Wednesday.
Jamaica’s Cavalier FC maintained their perfect start to the Concacaf Caribbean Cup as they registered a comfortable 4-1 over Trinidad and Tobago’s Miscellaneous Police FC in a lopsided Group A affair at Sabina Park on Thursday.
A brace each from Shaquille Stein (22nd and 65th) and Dwayne Atkinson (77th and 90+2) got the job done for the Rudolph Austin-coached Cavalier, which now sits comfortably atop the group on six points, three ahead of Jamaican counterpart Mount Pleasant FA.
Kevon Woodley (32nd) got Police's consolation as they remain fourth in the standings with a point.
Riding high from their opening 2-0 win over Mount Pleasant, Cavalier were always expected to start slight favourites, and they justified that with the opening strike less than 30 minutes in.
Suriname’s Stein, who is proving a valuable asset to Cavalier’s attacking line so far, got on the end of a through pass from Christopher Ainsworth and tucked home a right-footed effort from deep inside the 18-yard box.
However, Police were back on level terms 10 minutes later as Woodley converted an expert diving header from Alvin Jones’ perfectly weighted cross to make it 1-1 at the break.
Like they did at the start, Cavalier showed more purpose and regained the lead five minutes past the hour-mark, when Stein drove an effort past Adrian Foncette, in goal for Police, from a low pass from Atkinson.
Atkinson then added his name to the scoresheet 12 minutes later when he applied to finishing touches to a blistering counterattack to put Cavalier 3-1 up.
With Police down and unable to find a response, Cavalier continued to apply pressure and added a fourth when Atkinson fired home on the volley after Police’s custodian Foncette punched clear from a corner kick in time added.
Cavalier will next meet Haiti’s Real Hope FA in Kingston on September 17, while Police FC will seek its first victory of the campaign against Arnett Gardens FC in Couva on September 19.
On Thursday, Dominican Republic’s Ciabo FC climbed to second in Group B on four points with a 2-1 win over Antigua and Barbuda’s Grenades FC, who were wetting their feet for the first time in the tournament.
Trinidad and Tobago’s Miscellaneous Police FC opened their Concacaf Caribbean Cup debut campaign with a 1-1 stalemate against Haitian club Real Hope FA at Sabina Park in Kingston, on Thursday.
Angelo Exilus (35th) was on target for Real Hope FA, who are making third appearance in the Caribbean Cup, while Kwesi Allen (87th) secured Police FC a share of the spoils.
With the point, both teams sit behind Jamaican outfit Cavalier FC (three points) in Group A, while the other Jamaican teams, Mount Pleasant FA and Arnett Gardens, who will meet at the same venue on Tuesday, are yet to get off the mark.
After a fairly tentative start, Real Hope gradually gained the ascendancy, as they pushed for the opening goal, which eventually came when Exilus drove home a right-footer from deep inside the 18-yard box.
Police FC came to life soon after and almost pulled level in the 39th, but Kevon Woodley’s header went over the crossbar.
Woodley again went close in the latter stages of the first half, but another firm header was swallowed up by Real Hope’s goalkeeper, Gooly Elien, who was well-positioned to ensure his team remained 1-0 up at the break.
Like they did at the start, Real Hope again showed more purpose early on the resumption, with Exilus again getting on target, but his effort was blocked by Adrian Foncette in goal for Police FC on this occasion. Rapha Intervil pounced on the rebound but his effort was also charged down by Ross Russell Jr.
Real Hope continued their probe to add to their tally and almost did in the 62nd, but Yveto Dort's well-struck effort from just outside the box went just wide of the left upright.
Police FC eventually pulled level when Allen produced a stunning diving effort to head home a service from Elijah Belgrave three minutes from time.
Miscellaneous Police FC’s next assignment will be against Cavalier at Sabina Park next Thursday, while Real Hope’s next assignment will also be against Cavalier FC on September 17 at the same venue.
Trinidad and Tobago's Head coach Angus Eve was pleased that they achieved their objective from the two-match friendly series against Jamaica, but expressed that the overall fitness of local players require significant improvements to meet international standards.
Eve's sentiments came after a goalless stalemate between his Soca Warriors and their Reggae Boyz counterparts in the second contest at the Larry Gomes Stadium, on Sunday. Jamaica won the first game at the Hasely Crawford Stadium 1-0 courtesy of a Kahiem Dixon strike.
While he singled out players such as Adrian Foncette, Rhondel Gibson, Kai Moos and central defenders Jamal Jack and Robert Primus as standout performers over the two matches, Eve, who gifted debut caps to seven players, pointed out that getting the local-based players to the desired standard remains a work in progress.
"Everything you do is about stages. Everything about life is stages. Every time you go up a level, the work is more intense. Every time you go up a different level, it means you have to be more prepared," Eve said in the post-match press conference.
"We have to look at what the international standards are and we have to work harder to get the players fitter so they will be ready to play sharper and faster. The football now is more athletic. Jamaica's coach, Heimir Hallgrimsson, is saying the league in Jamaica is too slow. I find the same thing here," he added.
Still, with the friendlies aiding in his charge to gauge players, Eve is now in a better position to identify his final squad for their crucial Copa America qualifying playoff contest against Canada on March 23.
"Sometimes people ask for players to get opportunities, and these are the opportunities we have given to them over these two matches. You get to see who could stand up to physicality and stand up to the pace of the game and stuff like that. When I say our league is a little too slow, normally I get licks for it sometimes," Eve stated.
"I thought it was a good game of football. Jamaica were getting everybody behind the ball, and we were trying to break them down. One team was trying to win, and one team was trying to keep what they had. We were working on ball possession and trying to get in behind as much as possible to break them down. Clearly, they were working on their defensive shape and keeping things very tight, and that's basically what happened," he noted as he reflected on the second game.
Last March, the Soca Warriors visited Jamaica for a pair of friendlies, with attacker Reon Moore earning Eve's side a 1-0 win in the first game, before the teams played to a goalless stalemate in the second friendly. The results were a flip on this occasion.
"I thought it was a good competitive game for the local players, as we had good intensity. The exercise was good for both teams. Exactly what we wanted out of it is what we got," Eve ended.
Jamaica's senior Reggae Boyz drew first blood against their Trinidad and Tobago counterparts, as they registered a 1-0 win in the first of their two-match friendly series at the Hasely Crawford Stadium on Friday.
Kaheim Dixon's 58th-minute strike proved the solitary goal of the contest which was played behind closed doors to facilitate preparation for the twin island republic's Carifta Games trials.
Dixon, the former Clarendon College stalwart, was the first Reggae Boy to score on debut since Justin McMaster's feat against Cameroon in 2022.
Reggae Boyz assistant coach Merron Gordon said their main objective to expose new talents were met as they fielded 13 debutants on the day.
"Games like these are always tough playing against Trinidad and Tobago, but I think it was a good game. Both teams, I think had the same objective which was to expose these players as much as possible and I think we got that," Gordon said in a post-match interview.
"When you see a player like Kahiem score a goal on his debut is amazing and these are the kind of things that we want for them to transition from schoolboy football into international football and I think he acquitted himself well, and young Jayden Hibbert in goal is a teenager as well so that augurs well for us," he added.
The Jamaicans started well, and were more threatening in open play in the early exchanges, before Trinidad and Tobago's Soca Warriors found their rhythm. Though the first half ended goalless, it wasn't for a lack of trying, as both teams had looks at goal.
In the 12th minute, Kaihim Thomas got the first effort off for the Soca Warriors from a distance, but Reggae Boyz goalkeeper Kemar Foster took flight to tip over.
Alex Marshall, who proved a menace to the Soca Warriors's backline, responded for the Reggae Boyz, but his effort was parried by Adrian Foncette, in goal for Trinidad and Tobago.
Jamaica's Reggae Boyz maintained the momentum on the resumption and again went close through Romeo Guthrie, whose shot was blocked by Foncette at his near post two minutes in.
The deadlock was eventually broken when Dixon produced an intelligent run down the right channel, dismissed a defender and tucked home.
They should have doubled the lead in the 65th when Sue-Lae McCalla found himself with space and time to fire home from Guthrie's corner, but somehow steered the effort wide.
Seconds later, Marshall and Dixon connected well with the latter driving his right-footer into the sidenetting.
The Reggae Boyz continued to apply consistent pressure but found the Soca Warriors defence in defiant mode, as a 69th-minute effort by Jason Wright from Andre Fletcher's pass, was charged down.
A minute later, Devante Campbell played a perfect pass across the face of goal, but Wright couldn't apply finishing touch.
Campbell also had a grand opportunity to get on the scoresheet in time added, when he found himself in a one-on-one situation with substitute goalkeeper Christopher Biggette, but his tame effort was swallowed up by the custodian, who left his line well.
Despite the scoreline, Soca Warriors Head coach Angus Eve, took heart from the performance.
"Not disappointed at all. Many of these players are playing at this level for the very first time and I think they acquitted themselves well and we were in the game for the most part, but we gave away a sloppy goal that proved the difference in the game. We want to give people exposure as you can see, we made minimum number of changes because we wanted to expose the young guys as much as possible. So, this is a good exercise for them to understand the pace of the game at this level going forward," Eve said.
The teams will meet again on Sunday at the Larry Gomes Stadium in Arima at 3:00pm Jamaica time.
NB: That game can also be seen live on SportsMax
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