Boyz bounce back - Jamaica turn in good performance to beat Saudis 2-1

Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) technical committee chairman Rudolph Speid believes Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz showed their class following their 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia in yesterday’s second match of their two-game series at the Prince Faisal bin Fahad Stadium in Riyadh.

The ‘Green Falcons’ took the lead through Abdullah Al-Hamdan in the 29th minute, but goals from Daniel Johnson in the 34th minute and Javon East in the 64th powered the Boyz to their first win against the Saudis since 1999.

Speid pointed out that the changes to the team resulted in a massive improvement in how they played.

“This is a much more experienced group of players and I think they put Saudi Arabia in their place,” Speid told The Gleaner. “I don’t think Saudi Arabia should be one of the teams that can defeat us by such margins. The score could have been more. We could have had a bigger victory than what they beat us in the first game.”

In truth, Jamaica have always struggled against the Asians, with Saudi Arabia winning three of the teams’ six games against each other compared to Jamaica’s two wins, with their first game in 1998 ending in a 0-0 draw. Saudi Arabia have also scored 14 goals against the Jamaicans, with the Boyz scoring 6 goals in their head-to-head.

Jamaica’s victory capped head coach Theodore Whitmore’s 100th game in charge of the senior team, and Speid believes the former midfielder, who also played 120 matches for the country, has cemented his position as a legend of Jamaican football.

JFF President Michael Ricketts also extended his congratulations on Whitmore’s achievement in a release yesterday.

“Coach Whitmore has been with the team since 2007 in different capacities and has managed to rack up a great record in a very competitive region. I want to extend my personal congratulations and that of the federation to him, and hope that he will be around for at least another 100 games,” Ricketts said.

CONSTANT PRESSURE

In a contrast to how they started the first game against the Saudis on Saturday, which they lost 3-0, the Boyz asserted themselves from the opening whistle, applying constant pressure on the hosts. However, it was the Saudis who struck the first blow, when Al Hamdan received a great pass and finished past goalkeeper Dwayne Miller, as the Jamaicans appealed in vain for what appeared to be an offside infringement.

Leon Bailey, who was brought into the starting team along with Ravel Morrison, Bobby Reid, Michael Hector, Javon East and Oniel Fisher, missed a golden chance to equalise in the 33rd minute, when he could not turn the ball into the net from close range. The Jamaicans would, however, get their reward through Johnson, who registered his first international goal with a spectacular strike from distance. The Preston North End man, who recently won the Championship player of the year award, was playing in only his second match for Jamaica.

The onslaught on the Saudi Arabian goal continued in the second half and the Boyz took the lead after East muscled the ball away from a defender and calmly finished past goalkeeper Mohammed Al Yami. East should have made it 3-1 minutes later, after Bailey’s shot was initially saved by Al Yami, but with his toes almost on the goal line and the gaping goal at his mercy, East somehow managed to roll the ball gently to Al Yami, who was still on the ground to the striker’s right.

Nevertheless, former national midfielder Jermaine Johnson said that he was pleased that the team managed to bounce back from their defeat three days earlier.

“It was quite pleasing for me because the players are trying to do their best and encourage each other to do well. After the result last week, it was a positive turnaround and we got the win, so that’s good for us,” Johnson said.

Whitmore’s win record now stands at 52, three away from Rene Simoes, who has the most wins as head coach of the senior men’s programme with 55.

daniel.wheeler@gleanerjm.com

Final Stats

SA JA

Possession 61% 39%

Shots 7 13

Shots on Goal 2 6

Passing Accuracy 85% 78%

Yellow Cards 5 5

Red Cards 0 0

Corners 4 7