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Time to execute
Published: Tuesday | February 15, 2011 0 Comments
Downswell
Downswell
The United States' Mario Rodriques Jr (left) tangles with Cuba's Emmanuel Labrada during their CONCACAF Under-17 Final Group B encounter at the Montego Bay Sports Complex, Catherine Hall, yesterday. Rodriques scored in the Americans' 3-1 win. - photo by Adrian Frater
The United States' Mario Rodriques Jr (left) tangles with Cuba's Emmanuel Labrada during their CONCACAF Under-17 Final Group B encounter at the Montego Bay Sports Complex, Catherine Hall, yesterday. Rodriques scored in the Americans' 3-1 win. - photo by Adrian Frater
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Jamaica bow into action in clash against Caribbean arch-rivals T&T

Adrian Frater, News Editor

Western Bureau:

Host nation Jamaica will bow into action in Group C of the 2011 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship this afternoon, when they battle arch-rivals Trinidad & Tobago (T&T) in the feature game of a double-header at the Montego Bay Sports Complex, Catherine Hall, starting at three o' clock.

In the opening game slated for noon, the highly rated Honduras will open their campaign in Group B against a Barbados team which is hell-bent on creating a few surprises as they bid to secure one of four qualifying slots at stake for next summer's FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Mexico.

After their extensive six-week training camp in Brazil, during which they won four of the nine games against tough local club sides, national head coach, Wendell Downswell, believes Jamaica's young Reggae Boyz are ready to make a significant mark on the 12-team tournament.

"Our preparation has been quite good. We have put in the work, so it is now for the players to go out and execute," said Downswell. "We are confident, ready and highly motivated ... both the players and the coaching staff."

However, like Jamaica, the Shawn Cooper-coached T&T aggregation should be chock-full of confidence, especially as their rivalry with Jamaica is something they have always treated seriously.

Additionally, in their three-team qualifying tournament, Trinidad and Tobago went undefeated, scoring 10 goals and conceding just one.

Despite the 1-0 loss to Costa Rica in their last practice game, the Jamaicans are expected to hold their own, especially if there are solid performances from skipper Omar Holness, Jason Wright, Romario Williams and André Lewis, who all played well in Jamaica's recent 0-0 draw and 2-1 loss in a two-game warm-up series against the United States.

For T&T, having managed to secure a 0-0 draw against the highly rated Cubans during their qualifying campaign, and with exceptional young players in Shackiel Henry and Jomal Williams, they are unlikely to be intimidated by their Jamaican counterparts.

Guatamala, who will bow into action on Thursday, are the third team in the three-team Group C, which produced two qualifiers for the tournament's quarter-final phase.

In the curtain-raiser between Honduras, semi-finalists in the 2009 tournament, and Barbados, who have qualified for this phase of a CONCACAF championship for the first time, a keenly contested game is anticipated, albeit Honduras should start favourites.

Despite their enviable record in CONCACAF and three appearances in the Under-17 World Cup, Honduras enter the tournament struggling to find their best form.

Tallented team

However, it is expected that the team, which is coached by José Aleman and possesses good talent in the likes of Julio Moncada, Manuel Mejia, Kelvin Nunes and Jonathan Matute, could come good in this tournament.

On the other hand, Barbados, after their decent qualifying run, which saw them winning four games, drawing one and losing one, the Kenville Layne-coached eastern Caribbean team has lofty ambitions and the players are brimming with confidence.

"Although we have played only one practice game, we are very confident, because in that game we had a 2-1 win against T&T," said Layne, whose team features gifted players such as striker Jabarry Chandler, Diquan Adamonson and Zari Prescod.