All bark, no bite Boyz held to scoreless draw by 10-man Cuba

The Reggae Boyz left the National Stadium last night feeling they should have collected all three points after a dominant display in their opening Concacaf Nations League game ended in a scoreless draw against a resilient 10-man Cuban outfit.

Jamaica controlled the game from the first whistle until the last as the Boyz saw a plethora of opportunities wasted through poor finishing and goalkeeping heroics by custodian Raiko Arozarena.

Jamaica registered a staggering 21 shots to Cuba’s four as the team failed to breach the stalwart Cuban defence.

The Boyz started the game in comfortable fashion as a series of build-up plays applied early pressure on the Cuban defence.

The first opportunity came in 28th minute as Michail Antonio laid a pass in the box for Jamal Lowe. Lowe rounded his marker but his shot at goal was closed down by the onrushing goalkeeper.

Jamaica tightened their control over the game with an overwhelming 80 per cent possession in the first half and restricted Cuba without a single shot on target.

Cuba went down to 10 men near the end of the first half as defender Yunior Perez was sent off after a professional last-man foul to prevent a Jamaican attack.

The Boyz increased the pressure on their rivals in the second half as Demarai Gray broke through on the counter just after the restart. Unfortunately for the winger, he lost his footing on the slippery surface and sent his effort wide.

Lowe was the next Jamaican with an opportunity as he latched on to a cross inside the penalty box. However, he skied his close-range effort high and wide.

In a four-minute span, Cuban goalkeeper Arozarena made three brilliant saves to keep his team in the contest as he denied Antonio, Gray and Bobby Reid from finding the opener for Jamaica.

Desperate for a break, Jamaican fans started chanting for the inclusion of young winger Kaheim Dixon who was brought on in the 89th minute. However, despite injecting energy on the right wing, Jamaica would fail to find the net as the game ended 0-0.

Jamaica’s next game sees them travelling to Honduras on Tuesday for their second match of the Nations League campaign.