Jamaica vs Saint Kitts and Nevis
The Jamaicans are flying, make no mistake. They opened their Stateside football feast by drawing 1-1 with the CONCACAF Gold Cup holders, the USA, last weekend.
That was also a match in which the hosts needed a late Brandon Vazquez equaliser to avoid defeat.
They then delivered more CONCACAF Gold Cup 2023 highlights, scoring three times in less than half an hour en route to a 4-1 thrashing of Trinidad and Tobago.
That was also a day in which birthday boy, Demarai Gray, scored twice in only his second appearance for the national team and was joined on the scoresheet by fellow Premier League player Leon Bailey and teenager Dujuan Richards.
Now, with the minnows of the team ranked 136th in the world, Saint Kitts and Nevis, waiting in the wings, no wonder the SBOTOP CONCACAF Gold Cup 2023 betting odds are expecting more flair from the boys who love to party.
It’s the Reggae Boyz against the Sugar Boyz.
Talking Points
Again, this should be a walkover.
Saint Kitts and Nevis shipped six goals without reply against the US in midweek, four of which arrived in the opening 25 minutes.
They also conceded three against Trinidad and Tobago in their opener, so Jamaica start as firm favourites to book their place in the knockout stages.
It was at the quarter-final stage that they bowed out two years ago, but the nation which finished runners-up in back-to-back tournaments in 2015 and 2017 have set their aims higher than that this time around.
That 2015 Final was the first time that a Caribbean nation had ever reached a Gold Cup Final and four years later in 2019, Jamaica notched another achievement by becoming the first Caribbean side to reach the semi-finals in three consecutive Gold Cups.
Their class of 2023 is a team which has plenty of flair and a nation which has produced some of the most entertaining supporters I have ever seen so this all-Caribbean clash should be a kaleidoscope of colour.
You may think I am unwise to write Saint Kitts and Nevis off. After all, they have quietly been one of the more prominent forces in Caribbean football lately.
They made waves during CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying for Qatar 2022 by topping their first-round group over Trinidad and Tobago with the Cinderella run ending in the second round to El Salvador over two legs.
Now, on the back of an undefeated Nations League C campaign, the Sugar Boyz are at the Gold Cup for the first time.
Yet I just feel there is a gulf between them and their opponents in this group.
Jamaica have the bit between their teeth and, as they look potent in attack, and Saint Kitts and Nevis look highly vulnerable at the back, this has the potential to be a one-sided goal fest.
History
The nations met for the first time in 1979, a friendly in Basse Terre which the Jamaicans won 2-1.
That is a trend which has continued with only two draws breaking up eight Jamaican victories.
The two draws came in 1997 and 2001, while the last two meetings in 2009 and 2018 have both been friendlies and both gone the way of the Reggae Boyz.
A 1-0 success in 2009 was followed up by a 3-1 victory five years ago. At the time of writing, the betting odds are not available for this match. But either way, it’s Jamaica all the way for me.
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