CONCACAF Under 17 Boys Championships : IMG Academy, Bradenton, Florida March 16th – 24th, 2019

The Cayman Islands Under 17 Boys National Football team were held to a 1-1 draw by St. Vincent & the Grenadines in the team’s third game in Group A of the CONCACAF Under 17 Boys Championships qualifying round on Friday, March 22 at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.

A St. Vincent penalty in the 86th minute cancelled out Corey Smith’s 62nd minute opener in a game largely dominated by the Cayman Islands.

Grouped with Nicaragua, Grenada, the US Virgin Islands and St. Vincent & The Grenadines in Group a of the qualifying round, only the group winners will advance to the final round scheduled for May 2019.

Knowing that a win would place the team in an excellent position with only one game remaining against Nicaragua on Sunday, the local boys pressured their opponents from te kick off. Dominating much of the possession, the local boys were unlucky not to take the lead following some fine build-up play.

The back line of Daniel Wallace, Luke Byles, Victor Thompson Jr. and Caleb McFarlane coupled with Jonah Sigsworth and Jahrion Bodden slotting in the centre of midfield, set up a formidable wall that the Vincentians found difficult to penetrate.

Offensively, Jahmai Griffiths, Corey Smith, Barry Dre Tibbetts and Gunnar Studenhofft were causing no end of trouble for the St. Vincent defence as the local boys pushed forward in search of the opening goal.

Shots from Jahrion Bodden, Gunnar Studenhofft and Barry Dre Tibbetts in quick succession caused further confusion in the Vincentians’ penalty area but the opening goal was difficult to come by.

Caleb McFarlane was replaced in the 37th minute after sustaining what looked to be a series wrist injury.

After a few minutes of injury time were played, the half time whistle sounded with the score locked at 0-0.

The second half resumed with Cayman Islands in the ascendency as Corey Smith and Barry Dre Tibbetts ‘popped’ off a few shots that went agonizingly wide. Gunnar Studenhofft was making the most of his first start as he tested the goal keeper after being put through by Tibbetts.

In the 62nd minute, the Cayman Islands’ dominance paid off as Corey Smith found the back of the net to lift his team into a 1-0 lead. Winning the ball back after the restart, Studenhofft hit the inside of the post with the rebound bouncing into the hands of the floored goal keeper.

In the 65th minute, Jackson Kirkconnell replaced Jonah Sigsworth and in the 82nd minute, Joshua Small came on for Gunnar Studenhofft.

With time winding down, St. Vincent were awarded a penalty from a very questionable hand ball and from the resulting spot kick, tied the game with four minutes of regulation time remaining.

After a few more forays up front, the full time whistle sounded, much to the local boys’ disappointment as they knew it was two points lost rather than one point gained..

Coach Bruce Sigsworth lamented on the missed opportunity saying, “Our young men battled hard and found their stride more in the second half than the first. They did extremely well to recover after losing Caleb (McFarlane) to a broken wrist. Their perseverance paid off with a well-taken goal and the boys did well to maintain the lead only to lose it to a poor refereeing decision. The referee’s dismal day continued as he failed to award us an obvious penalty. The boys continued to push for the winner and should have secured the three points after going close on several occasions. ”

The Cayman Islands will play Nicaragua in the final Group A game on Sunday, March 24, knowing that a draw will see seal the group and a place in the final round.