Wed, Jun 08, 2011 page19

• The Reggae Boyz crush Grenada

  ON THE BEAT: Jamaica dominated the smallest nation in the Gold Cup in their Group B opener, while nine-man Guatemala held off Honduras in the other match

  • Reuters, LOS ANGELES
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  Jamaica made a strong start to their bid for a first Gold Cup title with a crushing 4-0 victory over Grenada on Monday.

  First-half goals from Luton Shelton and Ryan Johnson were supplemented after the break by Demar Phillips and Keammar Daley efforts as Jamaica dominated their opponents in an opening Group B match that could have been much worse for Grenada.

  “Our finishing was a big letdown,” Jamaica manager Theodore Whitmore told reporters after his team recorded 10 shots on goal. “We managed to score four — what a way to start.”

  

  Guatemala goalkeeper Ricardo Jerez, left, collides with Henry Thomas of Honduras in their Gold Cup Group B match at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, on Monday.

  Photo: AFP

  Grenada, the smallest nation competing in the 12-nation tournament, have yet to record a Gold Cup goal after being outscored 10-0 in their first tournament appearance in 2009.

  Grenada goalkeeper Shemel Louison made some daring saves in the second half, but his team managed just one wayward attempt at goal and could not keep Jamaica from dominating possession.

  Johnson, who plays for the San Jose Earthquakes in Major League Soccer, was named the man of the match as he helped his side thrive even without forward Omar Cummings, who missed the game with an ankle injury.

  “I want to help Jamaica go as far as we can in this tournament,” Johnson said. “We did the most important thing and that was to keep a clean sheet.”

  Both teams resume Group B action on Friday in Miami, where Jamaica face Guatemala and Grenada take on Honduras.

  GUATEMALA 0, HONDURAS 0

  REUTERS, LOS ANGELES

  Guatemala held off Honduras to grab a 0-0 draw in their Gold Cup Group B opener, despite finishing the game with nine men.

  Defenders Gustavo Cabrera, in the 61st minute, and Henry Medina, in the 78th minute, were sent off, but still Guatemala managed to deny their Central American rivals all three points during a spirited and physical match that went against the early Gold Cup trend of one-sided contests.

  Goalkeeper Ricardo Jerez, who needed treatment on multiple occasions in the second half, kept his Guatemala defense organized, but he had to withstand some heavy Honduras pressure in the final minutes to secure the point.

  “This tie feels like a win,” Jerez told reporters after he was named man of the match.

  Honduras, who captured the Gold Cup in 1981 and were considered dark horses to break up the recent monopoly of Mexico and the US, had some good chances to net the winning goal with attacker Carlo Costly looking dangerous, but Honduras, who competed at last year’s World Cup in South Africa, could not find the back of the net, much to the frustration of head coach Luis Fernando Suarez.

  “The way we played, we definitely didn’t deserve to win,” Suarez told reporters. “The players who were supposed to create did not create the space.”
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