Golden Jaguars edge Puerto Rico to top group

Guyana secured the top spot in group-5 in the opening round of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Caribbean Cup qualifiers, clinching a historic 1-0 win over hosts Puerto Rico yesterday at the Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium in Bayamon.

With both teams already secured of a berth to the next round following their convincing wins over Anguilla, the visitors snatched victory with unlikely hero Solomon Austin netting in the 64th minute.

Fielding a starting XI consisting of Anthony Whyte, Austin, Kester Jacobs, Sam Cox, Quincy Adams, Neil Danns, Tichard Joseph, Chris Nurse, Dwight Peters, Walter Moore and Gregory Richardson, the lanky centre-half sealed the contest when he directed his header past the goalkeeper, after latching onto a cross inside the area.

It was the first win for Guyana against Puerto Rico with their only other meeting ending 2-0 in favour of the Spanish-speaking nation on the 12th March 1993 in Georgetown.

With the win, the FIFA 156th-ranked Guyanese topped the standings with six points from two matches while the 170th-ranked Puerto Ricans remain on three points from their two matches.

Guyana will now progress to group-4 in the second round while the runners-up will progress to group-3.

Anguilla have been eliminated from the event with zero points.

The Golden Jaguars best showing in the championship was in the 2007 edition, when they lost out on a semi-final berth and a place in the CONCACAF Gold Cup due to goal difference.

In their most recent outing in 2014, Guyana made a first round exit, losing twice and securing one draw in their matches with an inexperienced side featuring predominantly local players who were making their debuts.

Round two of the event is slated to commence during the month of May, with the third round scheduled to begin in October. The 5th Place playoff will take place in the month of November while the grand finale will occur in May of 2017. The top four teams during the conclusion of the event will qualify to the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Final Points Standings

Team                     GP        W        L          D        GF       GA       GD       Pts
Guyana                   2           2         0           0          8           0        +8          6
Puerto Rico             2           1         1           0          4           1        +3          3
Anguilla                  2           0         2           0          0         11        -11         0