Jamaica whip Guyana in NY Caribbean Cup

BROOKLYN, New York (CMC):
Jamaica pounded Guyana 4-1 Sunday to record their second victory in as many games in the 2009 New York Caribbean Football Cup at Jefferson High School.

A hat-trick of goals by striker Ryan Reid put the match beyond the Guyanese.

Reid found the back of the Guyanese net in the fifth, 58th and 88th minutes, while Daniel Shaw registered Jamaica's other goal in the 35th minute.

After Reid gave the five-time champions the early lead, Jermaine Smart found the equaliser for Guyana in the 25th minute, blasting in a free-kick from 30 yards. The ball ricocheted off the crossbar and into the goal.

Equaliser

Ten minutes later, Shaw regained the lead for Jamaica, hammering a left-footer past Guyana's goalkeeper Adrian Alfred.

After ending the first half 2-1, Guyana's hopes in finding the equaliser in the second half quickly evaporated when Reid connected on a cross from Irvino English from the left flank, nudging past Alfred.

Reid then drilled home a fourth goal two minutes from the end to complete the emphatic win.

"I feel elated," Jamaica's coach Shell T. Robinson told CMC Sport in a post-match interview.

"The guys played very, very good, top-notch soccer. The Guyanese gave us a good fight, but we prevailed," he continued.

Competition

It was Jamaica's second victory in as many matches. In their first match two weeks ago, they trounced last year's cellar-placed team Dominica 3-0.

In Sunday's first game of a triple header, Antigua and Barbuda defeated Trinidad and Tobago 2-0 for their second win.

St Lucia were handed their first three points of the competition by a defaulting Colombia contingent - arriving late for their duel.

This Sunday's matches feature Dominica opposing St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), Guyana challenging Grenada and Haiti battling last season's runners-up St Kitts and Nevis.