Perrier’s strike lifts Girlz past Suriname
PARAMARIBO, Suriname — Jamaica’s Under-17 Reggae Girlz made it three wins from three with a 1-0 win over Suriname in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) World Cup qualifiers here at the Dr IR Franklin Essed Stadium yesterday.
Monique Perrier got the all-important strike in the 62nd minute, which gave the Girlz maximum nine points atop Group Four. Barbados also advanced on six points after they defeated St Lucia 3-0 in the opening encounter of the double-header.
The Jamaicans dominated the early exchanges in what was a bustling first half. They went close to the opening goal on numerous occasions, but were denied by stout defending.
The best opportunity of the half came in the seventh minute when Jody Brown muffed a clear chance into the waiting arms of goalkeeper Shaira Aaron.
The young Girlz came out even stronger on the other side of the interval and looked more tactically aware. The introduction of attacking midfielder Tarania Clarke upped the tempo of the game as she made an impact straight away.
The Girlz thought they had broken the deadlock when Clarke’s 48th-minute header seemed to have crossed the goal line, however Trinidadian referee Cecile Hinds thought otherwise. They continued to apply pressure and went close three minutes later, but Shanhaine Nelson’s left-footed shot sailed past the left upright.
And before the hosts could catch their breath, the Jamaicans came roaring once more when Clarke’s well struck right-footed shot from the edge of the box was parried by the custodian to the delight of the large home crowd.
But just when the home side thought they have survived the worst, Perrier popped up to tap in after another shot by Clarke came back off the upright. The hosts responded seven minutes later with a brisk counter-attack which caught the Jamaicans flat footed.
However, they were left cursing their luck when Chantrelle Rozenblad in a one-on-one with goalkeeper Oneilia Yearde hit her shot wide.
Head coach Lorne Donaldson was pleased with the overall outcome of the encounter.
“I thought this game was a lot better than the other games because the crowd was making a lot of noise, the kids were playing hard and I thought it was a good test for the girls to be goal-less at half-time. So I am pleased with the win,” he told the Jamaica Observer.
Meanwhile, Neil Sakimin of Suriname was also pleased with her team, which she explained only started training three weeks before the tournament.