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Jamaica earns quarterfinal spot in Gold Cup

Jamaica continues to build its case as a contender in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Behind second-half goals by Demar Phillips, the Reggae Boyz beat Guatemala 2-0 Friday night at FIU Stadium to clinch a quarterfinal berth with a game to spare. Phillips scored in the 65th and 78th minutes as the 2010 Caribbean Cup champs improved to 2-0-0 (six points) heading into Monday's final Group B match against Honduras in Harrison, N.J.

Guatemala (0-1-1, 1 point) finishes against Grenada and needs a win to have a chance of advancing in the 12-team tournament. Honduras played Grenada in the second game of the doubleheader.

"It was a good game for the team and for myself," said Phillips, who has three tournament goals. "Everybody played a part. We worked hard as a group."

Jamaica started six players currently on MLS rosters. One of those six, defender Dicoy Williams, left with an injury in the 11th minute.

Jamaica won the three previous Gold Cup meetings against Guatemala, most recently in 2005. That match featured seven goals. This one began with a scoreless first half that produced more collisions than scoring chances.

"We took a long time to adjust to what they were doing," Jamaica coach Theodore Whitmore said. "There was not a lot of space in the midfield. We made an adjustment to help us win the game."

That adjustment was bringing on midfielder Keammar Daley for Ryan Johnson in 63rd minute. Daley made an immediate impact, flicking a delicate chip pass to Phillips, who muscled past Guatemala defender Jonathan Lopez before scoring inside the far post.

Guatemala was reduced to 10 men in the 70th minute when defender Christian Noriega received his second yellow card. Phillips settled matters five minutes later, finishing a short crossing pass from Dane Richards in the 6-yard-box.

"Each game the team is getting better," Whitmore said. "I'm pretty comfortable with what I've seen the past couple games."

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