BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – Demarai Gray celebrated his move to Saudi Pro League club Al-Ettifaq with a second-half goal for Jamaica as the hosts beat Honduras 1-0 in the CONCACAF Nations League on Friday night.
Playing at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica were lucky not to fall behind before Gray put them ahead for good in the 64th minute of the Group B contest of League A.
The 27-year-old raced down the left flank and easily beat full-back Denil Maldonado before firing a low shot past goalkeeper Edrick Menjívar.
The goal was Gray’s third for Jamaica following his brace at the CONCACAF Gold Cup in July and came just days after he signed an eight million pounds sterling move away from English Premier club Everton.
In the same group, Saydrel Lewis looked to have won it for hosts Grenada with his 85th-minute strike but Mitchell de Vrede equalized two minutes later for Suriname, as the game ended 1-1 at the Kirani James Stadium.
Haiti and Cuba drew nil-all in the other game in the group in San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic.
All the other action was concentrated in League B where Montserrat and St Vincent and the Grenadines came away with narrow wins.
At the Wildey Turf Stadium in Bridgetown, hosts Barbados wasted a 2-1 lead as Montserrat came from behind to pull off a late 3-2 while in Fort-de-France, SVG produced two second-half goals to also overturn a one-goal deficit to beat Belize 2-1.
Montserrat led through Lyle Taylor’s sixth-minute strike but Barbados took command soon after, Elijah Downey equalizing two minutes later before Thierry Gale, who only last month penned a four-year deal with Austrian Bundesliga club Rapid Wien, put the hosts ahead in the 26th.
Seemingly en route to full points, Barbados had their hopes spoiled by Adrian Clifton who equalized in the 81st minute before Taylor completed his brace deep in stoppage time.
At the Stade Pierre-Aliker, SVG was losing 1-0 at half-time courtesy of Nana Mensah’s long-range volley in the 18th minute.
However, they turned things around in the second half. Marlon Simmons headed in Gidson Francis’s corner in the 51st minute before a pass from Jequan Adams deflected off the leg of Belizean defender Carlos Bernardez, as an own goal settled the contest in the 79th minute.
Results:
League A
(Group B)
At the Estadio Panamericano, SAN CRISTÓBAL:
Haiti drew with Cuba 0-0
At Kirani James Athletic Stadium, ST. GEORGE’S:
Grenada drew with Suriname 1-1
At the National Stadium, KINGSTON:
Jamaica beat Honduras 1-0
League B
(Group B)
At the Estadio Olímpico Félix Sánchez, SANTO DOMINGO:
Dominican Republic lost to Nicaragua 2-0
At the Wildey Turf Stadium, BRIDGETOWN:
Barbados lost to Montserrat 3-2
(Group C)
At the Dame Flora Duffy National Sports Centre, HAMILTON:
Bermuda drew with French Guiana 0-0
At the Stade Pierre-Aliker, FORT-DE-FRANCE:
Belize lost to St Vincent & the Grenadines 2-1
CMC