For the first time in the history of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Under-14 Challenge Series, Barbados have won Group A Tier II of the tournament, defeating Bermuda 4-3 on penalties in the final played yesterday afternoon at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Port of Spain, Trinidad.
Captained by Jamarco Johnson, Barbados remained unbeaten throughout the tournament and capped their performance with a fantastic victory, marking their firstever win in CFU Under-14 history.
In the presence of Barbados Football Association and CFU President Randy Harris, Barbados sealed this glorious moment thanks to their four successful penalty takers: Sacha Pounder, Amari Small, Maleek Peters, who equalised 3-3 for Barbados, and captain Johnson, who struck the all-important winning penalty, securing the 4-3 victory.
National Under-14 goalkeeper Shaquan King was outstanding, making crucial saves, denying Jeon Wolfe, the top scorer of the tournament, a chance to score. Bermuda captain Z-Ani Jennings also missed from the penalty spot.
In a post-game interview with CFU, Johnson said, “We created history today and I hope the next generation can do that, but I am feeling excited. I’m happy for the boys, I’m happy for everything.”
After a goalless first half, both teams looked to break the deadlock in the second half. Barbados created several chances, including an open shot by Small that ricocheted off the left goal post.
Fantastic save
As the teams pressed for a goal, Barbados won a freekick in the 43rd minute, taken by Johnson just outside the 18-yard box, only to be met with a fantastic save from Bermuda’s goalkeeper Xavier Thomas-Bassett, who was named the most outstanding goalkeeper of the tournament. Bermuda also took home the golden boot, awarded to Carter Thomas.
Applying pressure on Bermuda’s defence deep in the final third, Barbados maintained possession and kept their opponents
under constant threat in search of the much-needed goal.
Peters made a superb run, beating Bermuda’s backline and getting past the goalkeeper with a skilful touch, only for the ball to be cleared off the goal line. Proving to be a constant threat during regular time, Peters caused numerous problems for Bermuda’s defence but was repeatedly thwarted by the impressive Thomas-Bassett, leading the game into a penalty shootout.
During the preliminary rounds, Barbados defeated St Vincent and the Grenadines (6-1), Guyana (6-2), and the Cayman Islands (3-1), before dismissing the Turks and Caicos (3-0) in the semi-final.
Barbados coach Fitzgerald Carter expressed his joy, saying, “I am very excited about the competition and the opportunity for the players to come and express themselves. They trained hard leading up to the competition and they brought it home.”
Assisted by former national goalkeeper Morrison Taylor, Carter explained, “We gave them the confidence, we showed them, okay, this is what we want you to do, we want you to express yourselves. We want to create more creative players who can show what Barbados can do.”
“This is a new generation of players and we thank the clubs, the families, parents, and everyone who supported us. We want to thank CFU football for allowing us to win something and recognise that Barbados and Barbadians can play the game too.” (ML)
