Women’s CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers: Must-win game ends in 2-2 thriller

…Guyana out of contention for CONCACAF W Championships, Trinidad advance

It was a roller coaster of emotions at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Tobago on Tuesday night when Guyana and hosts Trinidad and Tobago battled tooth and nail for a spot in the CONCACAF Women’s Championships.

When the dust had settled, the result was one that Trinidad could be content with, but for Guyana, the 2-2 draw would be a crushing blow.
For the must-win encounter, Head Coach Dr. Ivan Joseph opted for a starting XI that comprised Goalkeeper Chante Sandiford, Brianne Desa, Captain Kayla DeSouza, Briana De Souza, Sydney Cummings, Ghilene Joseph, Calaigh Copland, Justine Rodrigues, Otesha Charles, Stefani Kouzas and the lone locally based player Annalisa Vincent.
On the other side, Trinidad and Tobago opted for Kimika Forbes (GK), Liana Hinds, Victoria Swift, Rhea Belgrave, Shadi Cecily Stoute, Kedie Johnson, Karyn Forbes (captain), Asha James, Cayla Mc Farlane, Maria-Frances Serrant and Raenah Campbell to start.
Billed as a difficult encounter from the start, the contest looked exactly that, with the Lady Jags and the female Soca Warriors going at each other well into the first half. Just as the half was about to expire without witness of a goal from either side, Guyana’s Sydney Cummings capitalised on a set piece to net Guyana’s first goal in the 45th.
One would expect the Soca Warriors to return with a fighting spirit, and the script played exactly in this way. Maria Frances-Serrant was clever enough to draw out a foul from Briane Desa, creating a penalty opportunity which Asha James has no issue taking and executing well.
The scores were level at 1-1 in the 48th.
Cognizant of the fact that nothing less than a victory was needed in order for the Lady Jags to move on to the Championships, the Guyanese ladies went into overdrive once again in pursuit of the deciding goal.
In the 82nd, Sydney Cummings once again found the solution as Trinidad’s goalie Kimika Forbes made a rookie mistake after an incoming free kick, pushing the score to 2-1 in Guyana’s favour.
With the CONCACAF Championships qualification now in sight, the Lady Jags got the bitter taste of what their male counterparts, the Golden Jaguars, experienced only mere weeks ago in Trinidad and Tobago.
While the stakes were not as high for the Golden Jags, the heart shattering feeling of a last-minute, equalizing goal is now a common feeling between Guyana’s Men’s and Women’s senior teams.
It was substitute player Lauryn Hutchinson who connected with the back of the net in the 90th to level the scores. The few minutes of added time were not enough for the Lady Jags to draw inspiration from the jaws of defeat, as the game ended in a 2-2 draw.
The draw meant that Trinidad and Tobago would finish as the top team in Group F, with 10 points, while Guyana finished second with 8 points, compliments of their back-to-back draws against Nicaragua and Trinidad respectively.
As such, Trinidad will be the only team from Group F to advance to the CONCACAF Women’s Championships from July 4-18 in Mexico. (Jemima Holmes)