FORT DE FRANCE, Martinique — Defending champions Jamaica defeated French Guiana 4-2 on penalties to book their spot in the final of the Scotiabank CFU Men’s Caribbean Cup at the Stade Pierre Aliker this evening.

Both teams had played to a hard-fought 1-1 draw after regulation and extra time.

Loic Baal had given the French-speaking team the lead in the 21st minute, while veteran Jermaine Johnson got his second consecutive goal since his return to the national setup, bringing the Reggae Boyz back into contention with a strike in the 70th minute.

In the penalty shootout, the first Jamaican kicker Michael Binns missed the target altogether, but Owayne Gordon, Shamar Nicholson, Oneil Fisher and Cory Burke made no mistake from the 12-yard mark.

Scoring for French Guiana were Cedric Fabien and Thomas Issorat. Meanwhile, a brilliant save by Dwayne Miller denied Jean-David LeGrand and Rhudy Evens missed the frame.

Jamaica will now await the winner of Thursday’s late kick-off between Dutch-speaking Curacao and hosts Martinique for Sunday’s final. At the time of posting both were goalless.

Sean Williams