Missing some key players and facing a physical Jamaica side under fire for a poor start to the final round of World Cup qualifying, Canada emerged with a valuable away point after a scoreless draw Sunday in Kingston, Jamaica.
The Canadians (1-0-4) remain unbeaten in the Octagonal round-robin. But they will think back on squandering a gilt-edged chance falling to Liam Millar in the second half of a game where clear scoring chances were few and far between.
It’s a measure of the raised expectations around the 51st-ranked Canadian men that the single point will be seen as a disappointment in some quarters. But factoring in Thursday’s 1-1 draw in Mexico, it’s been a productive trip.
“We’ve come away with a good point,” said Canada coach John Herdman, seeing the glass half full. “I think this is a good point. We’ll rue missing two [more on the night] but I think coming out of this — Mexico’s a tough place to get a point, Jamaica’s a tough place to come and get a point.
“And we’re on our way back home now for three home matches.”
WATCH | Canada remains unbeaten in final round following draw against Jamaica:
Canada draws Jamaica to earn point in World Cup qualifier
8 hours ago
Brampton, Ontario’s Liam Millar was turned away by Jamaican keeper Andre Blake to keep things scoreless in Kingston, Jamaica on Sunday. 1:42
Canada returns to Toronto to host Panama on Wednesday at BMO Field. Then it’s two more home games in Edmonton in November, against Costa Rica and Mexico.
Jamaica goalkeeper Andre Blake made a remarkable save in the 60th minute to deny Millar, who seemed to have an open net after a fine low cross from Alphonso Davies, who showed his class throughout the game. Herdman and Millar were both left holding their heads in disbelief after the athletic Blake, the reigning MLS goalkeeper of the year with the Philadelphia Union, somehow covered the gap to get his hands to the ball.
“A game-wining save for us,” said Jamaica coach Theodore Whitmore.
‘We never really threatened them at the levels we can’
The contest, played on a bumpy pitch at an empty Kingston National Stadium, was no work of art. The Canadians had more of the ball in the first half but neither team put a shot on target in the first 45 minutes.
Canada outshot No. 59 Jamaica 10-9 (2-1 in shots on target) and had 10 corners to Jamaica’s three.
“We never really threatened them at the levels that we can,” said Herdman.
Jamaica (0-3-2), which hit the post early in the second half, looked most dangerous on set pieces and crosses. Canada, meanwhile, failed to take advantage of its numerous corners.
Jamaica took no prisoners with Andre Gray lucky to escape with a yellow card in the eighth minute for elbowing a Canadian defender to the ground. Costa Rican referee Keylor Herrera handed out four cautions to Jamaica and one to Canada’s Samuel Piette.
Jamaica was called for 21 fouls, compared to 12 for Canada.
In other games Sunday, Panama defeated the U.S. 1-0 in Panama City, Costa Rica beat El Salvador 2-1 in San Jose, Costa Rica, and Mexico blanked Honduras 3-0 in Mexico City.
Ninth-ranked Mexico (3-0-2) remains atop the standings with 11 points. The 13th-ranked U.S. and No. 68 Panama (both 2-1-2) are three points behind, with the Americans holding down second place on goal difference. Canada is fourth on seven points, ahead of No. 44 Costa Rica (1-1-3) on six, No. 65 El Salvador (1-2-2) on five, No. 63 Honduras (0-2-3) on three and Jamaica on two.
Each of the eight teams in the Octagonal play 14 matches. Come March, the top three sides will book their ticket to Qatar 2022 with the fourth-place team taking part in an intercontinental playoff to see who joins them.
The struggling Reggae Boyz came into play Sunday under a microscope with Jamaica’s Gleaner newspaper calling it “a day of reckoning” for the home side. Herdman called Jamaica “a wounded animal at the moment.”
Jamaica was beaten 2-0 by the U.S. in Austin on Thursday. Prior to that the Jamaicans lost 2-1 in Mexico, 3-0 to visiting Panama and tied 1-1 in Costa Rica.
Injuries, changes made to starting lineup
Canada opened play in the final qualifying round by tying visiting Honduras 1-1 before drawing the U.S. 1-1 in Nashville and blanking El Salvador 3-0 in Toronto.
The Canadians were without the injured Atiba Hutchinson, Cyle Larin and Lucas Cavallini as well as veteran goalkeeper Milan Borjan, who is recovering from COVID. Richie Laryea, Tajon Buchanan and Steven Vitoria were suspended after picking up yellow cards, their second of the round, in the second half against Mexico.
Defender Doneil Henry, making his 49th appearance, captained Canada for the first time.
Herdman made five changes to his starting lineup with Henry, Sam Adekugbe, Derek Cornelius, Piette and Millar slotting in for the three suspended players with midfielder Stephen Eustaquio, who is on a yellow card, and defender Kamal Miller dropping to the bench.
The Canadian starting 11 came into the game with a combined 281 caps with Piette, Jonathan Osorio and Henry accounting for 142 of them.
Junior Hoilett and David Wotherspoon started on the bench, having joined the team in Jamaica after skipping the Mexico portion of the trip due to the quarantine in Britain necessitated by a visit to Mexico.
The Jamaica starting 11 included Blake and Alvas Powell (Philadelphia Union), Kemar Lawrence (Toronto FC), Kemar Roofe (Rangers, Scotland), Oniel Fisher (L.A. Galaxy), Bobby Reid (Fulham, England) and Shamar Nicholson (Charleroi, Belgium).
Missing were star striker Michail Antonio (West Ham, England), Liam Bailey (Aston Villa, England), Liam Moore (Reading, England), Ethan Pinnock (Brentford, England) and the suspended Damion Lowe (Al-Ittihad, Egypt).
Missed opportunities
It was a choppy first half with both teams looking to suffocate the other.
The Jamaicans kept a close eye on Davies with Fisher yellow-carded in the seventh minute for taking down the speedy Bayern Munich star. Davies went down again in the 20th minute, caught in the face by a swinging arm from Je-Vaughn Watson, who had been booked minutes earlier.
Jamaica threatened in the 23rd minute off a Lawrence set piece delivery but Roofe’s angled header went wide.
More Jamaica physical play left Davies writhing on the ground again in the 26th minute after Fisher fell on his leg.
Jamaica had another good chance in the 38th when a cross found Junior Flemmings in space at the far post but his header was blocked by Canadian Alistair Johnston.
Early in the second half, Flemmings’ header hit the post after a fine set piece delivery from Lawrence.
Eustaquio came close after coming on in the second half, heading just wide in the 73rd. Maxime Crepeau made a diving save on Lawrence’s long-range shot in stoppage time.
It marks Canada’s first trip to the final round of qualifying in the region since the lead-up to France 98. The Canadian men have only ever taken part in one World Cup, in 1986 in Mexico.
Canada came into the game with a 9-6-6 record against Jamaica in 21 international “A” matches since 1985. The Canadian men were 1-2-3 against the Reggae Boyz in World Cup qualifiers (1992, 1997 and 2008).
Canada won 2-0 the last time the two met, in September 2017 at BMO Field. That game saw a 16-year-old Davies sent off in the 75th minute for kicking out at Jamaica’s Lowe after the two went down in a tangle in the corner.
The Canadian men had lost their last four games in Jamaica.
WATCH | Expectations of Canada vs Jamaica in World Cup Qualifying:
World Cup Qualifying: What to expect from Jamaica vs. Canada
2 days ago
The Canadian men’s national soccer team is gearing up for the second of three October World Cup qualifying matches against Jamaica, away from home in Kingston. After a tight 1-1 draw to Mexico at the Azteca in Mexico City, CBC Sports’ Anders Marshall speaks with Jamaica Television’s Simon Preston for a breakdown of CanMNT’s next opponent. 4:22
The French league’s legal commission has ordered Paris Saint-Germain to pay Kylian Mbappé the 55 million euros ($61 million) in unpaid wages that he claims he’s entitled to, the league said Thursday.
The league confirmed the decision to The Associated Press without more details, a day after the France superstar rejected a mediation offer by the commission in his dispute with his former club.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former football star Reggie Bush was at his Encino home Tuesday night when three male suspects attempted to break in, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.
“Everyone is safe,” Bush said in a text message to the newspaper.
The Los Angeles Police Dept. told the Times that a resident of the house reported hearing a window break and broken glass was found outside. Police said nothing was stolen and that three male suspects dressed in black were seen leaving the scene.
Bush starred at Southern California and in the NFL. The former running back was reinstated as the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner this year. He forfeited it in 2010 after USC was hit with sanctions partly related to Bush’s dealings with two aspiring sports marketers.
VANCOUVER – A fresh face has been gracing the B.C. Lions‘ highlight reels in recent weeks.
Midway through his second CFL campaign, wide receiver Ayden Eberhardt has contributed touchdowns in two consecutive games.
The 26-year-old wide receiver from Loveland, Colo., was the lone B.C. player to reel in a passing major in his team’s 37-23 victory over the league-leading Montreal Alouettes last Friday. The week before, he notched his first CFL touchdown in the Lions’ win over the Ottawa Redblacks.
“It’s been awesome. It’s been really good,” Eberhardt said of his recent play. “At the end of the day, the biggest stat to me is if we win. But who doesn’t love scoring?”
He’ll look to add to the tally Friday when the Leos (7-6) host the Toronto Argonauts.
Eberhardt signed with B.C. as a free agent in January 2023 and spent much of last season on the practice squad before cementing a role on the roster this year.
The six-foot-two, 195-pound University of Wyoming product has earned more opportunities in his second season, said Lions’ head coach and co-general manager Rick Campbell.
“He’s a super hard worker and very smart. He understands, has high football IQ, as we call it,” Campbell said.
The fact that Eberhardt can play virtually every receiving position helps.
“He could literally go into a game and we could throw him into a spot and he’d know exactly what he’s doing,” the coach said. “That allows him to play fast and earn the quarterback’s trust. And you see him making plays.”
Eberhardt credited his teammates, coaches and the rest of the Lions’ staff with helping him prepare for any situation he might face. They’ve all spent time teaching him the ins and outs of the Canadian game, or go over the playbook and run routes after practice, he said.
“I’ve played every single position on our offence in a game in the last two years, which is kind of crazy. But I love playing football,” he said. “I want to play any position that the team needs me to play.”
While B.C.’s lineup is studded with stars like running back William Stanback — who has a CFL-high 938 rushing yards — and wide receiver Justin McInnis — who leads the league in both receiving yards (1,074) and receiving TDs (seven) — versatility has been a critical part of the team’s back-to-back wins.
“I think we’ve got a lot of talented guys who deserve to get the ball and make big plays when they have the ball in their hands. So it’s really my job to get them the ball as much as possible,” said quarterback Nathan Rourke.
“I think that makes it easy when you can lean on those guys and, really, we’re in a situation where anyone can have a big game. And I think that’s a good place to be.”
Even with a talented lineup, the Lions face a tough test against an eager Argos side.
Toronto lost its second straight game Saturday when it dropped a 41-27 decision to Ottawa.
“We’ll have our hands full,” Rourke said. “We’ll have to adjust on the fly to whatever their game plan is. And no doubt, they’ll be ready to go so we’ll have to be as well.”
The two sides have already met once this season when the Argos handed the Lions a 35-27 loss in Toronto back on June 9.
A win on Friday would vault B.C. to the top of the West Division standings, over the 7-6 Winnipeg Blue Bombers who are on a bye week.
Collecting that victory isn’t assured, though, even with Toronto coming in on a two-game skid, Campbell said.
“They’ve hit a little bit of a rut, but they’re a really good team,” he said. “They’re very athletic. And you can really see (quarterback Chad Kelly’s) got zip on the ball. When you see him in there, he can make all the throws. So we’re expecting their best shot.”
TORONTO ARGONAUTS (6-6) AT B.C. LIONS (7-6)
Friday, B.C. Place
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: The Lions boast a 4-1 home record this season, including a 38-12 victory over the Redblacks at Royal Athletic Park in Victoria, B.C., on Aug. 31. The Argos have struggled outside of BMO Field and hold a 1-5 away record. Trips to the West Coast haven’t been easy for Toronto in recent years — since 2003, the club is 4-14 in road games against B.C.
CENTURION: B.C. defensive back Garry Peters is set to appear in his 100th consecutive game. The 32-year-old from Conyers, Ga., is a two-time CFL all-star who has amassed 381 defensive tackles, 19 special teams tackles and 16 interceptions over seven seasons. “Just being on the field with the guys every day, running around, talking trash back and forth, it keeps me young,” Peters said. “It makes me feel good, and my body doesn’t really feel it. I’ve been blessed to be able to play 100 straight.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
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