If Darren Mattocks had held his nerve with one gilt-edge chance for the Reggae Boys in the first half, it could have been a shock result for Uruguay. The striker sprinted into the Uruguay penalty area, beating two defenders before unleashing a volley that he completely miskicked and went bouncing into the feet of Godin from close range.
At halftime, Jamaica were arguably the better of the two sides from start to finish. The Reggae Boyz have defended incredibly well, keeping Uruguay’s La Celeste at bay with resolute defending, whilst they have also impressed whenever they have been able to push forward, with Barnes, McAnuff and Mattocks looking dangerous in front of goal.
Hector pulled Rolan to the floor, resulting in another free kick for Uruguay, this time just outside of the Jamaica penalty area on the left wing. It’s sent in towards Gimenez before falling at the feet of Rodriguez, who then calmly slots the ball into the bottom right-hand corner of the net from close range.
Despite coming away with all three points, Uruguay’s captain Oscar Tabarez will no doubt be disappointed with the way in which his players performed today. They were arguably second best to an impressive Jamaica team for the majority of the game and are only able to leave with a victory thanks to an instinctive close-range strike from Rodriguez. The Reggae Boyz will feel hard done by, and rightly so, after putting in such a strong and admirable performance at both ends of the pitch.
