CONCACAF
Under 17 Boys Championships : IMG Academy, Bradenton, Florida

March
16th
– 24th,
2019

Under
17 Boys secure second win in regional tournament

The Cayman
Islands Under 17 Boys National Football secured their second win in
two days on Monday, March 18th as they defeated the United States
Virgin Islands (USVI) 3-0 in a Group A game at the CONCACAF Under 17
Boys Championships qualifying round at the IMG Academy in Bradenton,
Florida.

First half
goals from Joshua Small and Corey Smith and a third off the boot of
Jonah Sigsworth in the second half was enough to send the USVI
crashing to their second defeat of the tournament.

Grouped
with Nicaragua, Grenada, the USVI 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

The local
boys found the early going difficult as they had to contend with a
strong wind that played havoc with the ball. With the wind at their
backs, the USVI were definitely benefitting from the weather
conditions as the local boys conceded a series of corners in quick
succession.

Fortunately,
the Cayman back line, comprised of Daniel Wallace, Caleb McFarlane,
Victor Thompson Jr. and Luke Byles, successively dealt with the
corners and quickly started a number of counter-attacks. It was from
one such transition that ended with Joshua Small grabbing the game’s
first goal in the 37th
minute.

With the
team growing in confidence, Corey Smith scored less than a minute
later in the 38th
minute to make it 2-0 to the Cayman Islands.

The local
boys enjoyed a good spell of play as they continued to push forward
forcing the USVI back on their heels, unable to recover from the two
quick goals they conceded.

The
halftime whistle could not have come any sooner for the USVI as the
Cayman Islands left the field leading 2-0.

Half time
changes were made as D’Shawn Brown replaced Caleb McFarlane in
defence.

With ten
minutes gone in the second half, the Cayman Islands found themselves
3-0 up as Jonah Sigsworth was on hand to turn a Jackson Kirkconnell
shot into the USVI net, much to the delight of his team mates and
coaches.

Celebrations were short-lived though as the local boys conceded a penalty in the 56th minute. With Micah O’Garro facing his first ever penalty as the Under 17 goal keeper, the odds were clearly in favour of the USVI reducing the deficit. But it was not to be as young O’Garro was up for the challenge and his save kept the 3-0 lead intact.

With time
running out for the USVI, the Cayman Islands rung in the changes as
Harrison Hew replaced Jonah Sigsworth and Breshawn Watson came on for
Joshua Small. Ball possession was the name of the game for the local
boys, which frustrated their opponents as three yellow cards were
brandished in the space of 10 minutes for some very heavy fouls.

With
victory secure, the local boys ran out the clock with some fine
possession football. Another excellent win without conceding a goal.

Following
the victory, a very pleased coach Bruce Sigsworth said, “Our boys
did extremely well in doing what they were taught to do against a
very physical USVI team. They did well to keep their heads when
challenged. Another clean sheet is a good sign that our defence is
working well together, along with our goal keeper, who saved a
penalty. We look to build on what we have practiced and hope to
improve our play over the final two games.”

Next up for
the Cayman Islands is St. Vincent & The Grenadines on Friday,
March 22 followed by a final game against Nicaragua on Sunday, March
24.

Reported
by:

Neil
Murray

Chairman,
CIFA Youth Committee