SVG finish World Cup campaign in goal fest
St Vincent and the Grenadinesâ Vincy Heat ended their sojourn in Group C of the CONCACAF Zone of the 2018 World Cup Qualifiers, pounded by Guatemala 9-3 in Guatemala City last Tuesday night.{{more}}
Oalex Anderson scored in the 10th minute to give the Vincentians something to cheer about at the Estadio Mateo Flores.
Anderson, a 20-year-old, who plays for the Seattle Sounders in US Major League Soccer, wrote his name in history, as he registered St Vincent and the Grenadinesâ first goal against Guatemala, the fourth time the senior squads were engaging each other.
But the joy of scoring was short-lived as Gerson Tinoco equalized in the 13th minute.
Veteran player Carlos Ruiz then scored in the 20th and 27th minutes, before Anderson was on the score sheet again in the 30th minute to make it 3-2. Ruiz with a blitz in the 37th, 57th and 59th, extended the home teamâs lead. Rafael Morales registered his item in the 78th, while Jean Marquez put in the ninth in the 82nd minute.
St Vincent and the Grenadinesâ Nazir Mc Burnette made it 9-3 in the 89th minute, as the 12 goals fest ended.
The match was the last for the 36-year-old Ruiz, who became the all-time leading goal scorer in World Cup Qualifiers, bettering Iranâs Ali Daei. Ruiz, in total, scored 39, to Daeiâs 35.
The Vincentians were winless in their six matches, scoring six goals, while conceding 34, finishing with a minus 28 goal differential.
The other match in the group played last night saw the USA blanking Trinidad and Tobago 4 -0 in Jacksonville, Florida. A brace from Jozy Altidore in the 59th and 62nd minutes, along with strikes from Sacha Kljestan in the 44th and Paul Arriola in the 71st, pushed the USA to 13 points and the top of the group.
The Americans ended their run with four wins, a draw and a loss.
Trinidad and Tobago finished on 11 points, gained from three wins, two draws and one loss.
In other CONCACAF results, in Group B, Costa Rica beat Panama 3-1 and Haiti stopped Jamaica 2-0, while in Group A, Mexico and Honduras played to a goalless draw and Canada stopped El Salvador, 3-1.
The six heading to the hexagonal stage of the qualifiers are Mexico, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, USA and Trinidad and Tobago.
They will play in a round robin, home and away tie, beginning November 11, 2016.
From the âhexâ, the three top finishers get tickets straight to the Russia finals in 2018, with the fourth place engaging in a play-off versus the third place winner of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for another possible place in the final for the CONCACAF confederation.(RT)
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