Jamaica 2, Canada 1 | 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup Match Recap

Franco Panizo

For the first time at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, Canada found themselves playing from behind. For the first time at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, Canada tasted defeat.

Jamaica knocked the Canadians out of the Gold Cup with a 2-1 quarterfinals victory at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on Thursday night. Canada fell behind 2-0 early in the second half after Romario Williams struck from distance, but a pretty goal from David Junior Hoilett shortly after the hour-mark gave the North American nation a shot at pulling off a comeback.

Thanks to some solid goalkeeping from Andre Blake, that never happened as the Jamaicans held on for the victory that gave them a second straight semifinals berth.

Goals

6' – JAM – Shaun Francis
50' – JAM – Romario Williams
61' – CAN – David Junior Hoilett
CONCACAF Man of the Match: Andre Blake

Three Things

MATTOCKS SHINES: He may not have found the back of the net, but Darren Mattocks had quite the game. Mattocks used his speed to cause Canada's back line fits all night, and he set up both goals -- including Shaun Francis' sixth-minute opener -- to give Jamaica a healthy lead early in the second half. Mattocks nearly scored on a couple of occasions, but some good goalkeeping and last-ditch defending prevented him from tallying. Nonetheless, this is the type of performance Mattocks will want to replicate both during the rest of this tournament and in MLS.
GOALS CHANGE GAMES: Canada struggled to do much in the attack for much of the first hour, but then David Junior Hoilett's impressive effort from distance altered the complexion of the game. Down only one goal instead of two, the Canadians sent in waves of attacks during the final 30 minutes and created some decent chances. They never found the equalizer thanks in part to Blake's brilliance, but Canada looked good and aggressive down the stretch.
WHAT A STRIKE: Not to take anything away from Hoilett's superb finish, but Romario Williams had arguably the best goal of the match with his effort in the 50th minute. Williams took advantage of the small bit of space he was given on the play, and blasted a shot to the far corner. Canada goalkeeper Milan Borjan got a hand to it, but it was not enough to deny Williams of a highlight reel-worthy goal that stood as the game-winner.

Lineups

Jamaica (4-4-2, left to right): #1 Andre Blake – #20 Kemar Lawrence, #21 Jermaine Taylor, #3 Damion Lowe, #5 Alvas Powell – #20 Shaun Francis (67', #11 Cory Burke), #15 Je-Vaughn Watson, #17 Kevon Lambert (89', #12 Michael Binns), #18 Owayne Gordon – #10 Darren Mattocks, #22 Romario Williams (81', #4 Ladale Richie)

Canada (4-3-3, left to right): #18 Milan Borjan – #17 Marcel de Jong, #19 Steven Vitoria (56', #3 Manjrekar James), #5 Dejan Jakovic, #23 Michael Petrasso – #6 Samuel Piette, #7 Russell Teibert, #8 Scott Arfield – #12 Alphonso Davies (82', #16 Anthony Jackson-Hamel), #24 Cyle Larin (56', #9 Lucas Cavallini), #10 David Junior Hoilett