Action from the Caribbean under-20 qualifier between Trinidad & Tobago and Cuba (white jersey) on October 22, 2016, in Willemstad, Curacao.
WILLEMSTAD, Curacao – Haiti opened its schedule in the final round of Caribbean qualifying for the 2017 CONCACAF Under-20 Championship much in the same way it competed in the first round earlier this year: with a large win.
Led by Ronaldo Daus’ hat-trick, the Haitians continued on the offensive with a 5-1 victory over St. Lucia on Saturday at the Stadion Ergilio Hato, a result that lifted them to 21 goals in four tournament games.
Roberto Louima extended his scoring streak to four games, giving Haiti a 1-0 lead in in the sixth minute for his fifth overall goal.
Strikes by Ronaldo Damus (23’) and Kenley Dede (78’) made it 3-0 for the Les Grenadiers, before Keeroy Lionel (80’) put St. Lucia on the scoreboard. It was the first goal conceded by Haiti in 440 minutes of play. Damus (83’, 86’) then netted twice as the clock to elapsed to complete the scoreline.
In the evening’s other match, Trinidad & Tobago and Cuba played to 0-0 draw.
“I think this was a good start for us. It was a difficult game, very physical and well contested by both sides, but our boys handled it very well,” T&T head coach Brian Williams told TTFA Media. “We knew it was going to be tough heading into the match and I think Cuba also had to put in a decent shift on the evening.
“The boys are in good spirit after the match and now we will be looking to have a strong showing against St Lucia and go all out for the win on Monday.”
Group A play resumes Sunday with Bermuda (1W-0D-0L, 3 points) and Antigua & Barbuda (1-0-0,3 ) in position to clinch a semifinal spot and a berth to the CONCACAF event with wins over host Curacao (0-0-1, 0) and St. Kitts & Nevis (0-0-1, 0), respectively.
The competition, which runs through October 30, will qualify the top five finishers to the next CONCACAF Under-20 Championship, which will be played in Costa Rica from February 17-March 5, 2017. The 12-team field already includes the host nation; Central American qualifiers El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, as well as automatic North American entrants Canada, Mexico and the United States.
2016 CARIBBEAN UNDER-20 QUALIFYING – FINAL ROUND
Curacao
October 21-30, 2016
SCHEDULE
GROUP A (Stadion Ergilio Hato – Willemstad, Curacao)
October 21, 2016
Bermuda 3, St. Kitts & Nevis 1
Knory Scott 26’; Tevahn Tyrell 30’; 37’ / Tahir Hanley 17’
Curacao 0, Antigua & Barbuda 1
Javorn Stevens 86’
Bermuda 1-1-0-0-3-1-3
Antigua & Barbuda 1-1-0-0-1-0-3
Curacao 1-0-0-1-0-1-0
St. Kitts & Nevis 1-0-0-1-1-3-0
October 23, 2016: St. Kitts & Nevis v Antigua & Barbuda; Curacao v Bermuda
October 25, 2016: Antigua & Barbuda v Bermuda; Curacao v St. Kitts & Nevis
GROUP B (Stadion Ergilio Hato – Willemstad, Curacao)
October 22, 2016
Haiti 5, St. Lucia 1
Roberto Louima 6’; Ronaldo Damus 23’, 83’, 86’; Kenley Dede 78’ / Keeroy Lionel 80’
Trinidad & Tobago 0, Cuba 0
Haiti 1-1-0-0-5-1-3
Cuba 1-0-1-0-0-0-1
Trinidad & Tobago 1-0-1-0-0-0-1
St. Lucia 1-0-0-1-1-5-0
October 24, 2016: St. Lucia v Trinidad & Tobago; Haiti v Cuba
October 26, 2016: Cuba v St. Lucia; Trinidad & Tobago v Haiti
SEMIFINALS (Stadion Ergilio Hato – Willemstad, Curacao)
October 28, 2016: Group A winner v Group B runner-up; Group B winner v Group A runner-up
THIRD PLACE MATCH (Stadion Ergilio Hato – Willemstad, Curacao)
October 30, 2016: Semifinal losers
FINAL (Stadion Ergilio Hato – Willemstad, Curacao)
October 30, 2016: Semifinal winners
