Posted on October 18, 2012
Dane Richards sometimes can be short on words, but many times long on important goals.
Just take, for example, what he accomplished on Tuesday night for the Jamaican National Team. He struck for a late-game brace as the Reggze Boyz defeated Antigua & Barbuda, 4-1, in a CONCACAF Group C match to reach the final round of World Cup qualifying. The goals helped the host Jamaicans finish with a great goal differential (plus three to plus one) than Guatemala, 3-1 losers at the United States.
When asked by a reporter if those goals were the most important of his career, Richards told the Jamaican Observer: “Definitely, man!”
Richards, who plays for the Vancouver Whitecaps after a July trade from the New York Red Bulls, has tallied 10 times for the Reggae Boyz, but could not have picked a better time to register a brace. He scored in the 77th and 88th minutes to boost the hosts from a 2-1 lead into a 4-1 advantage that turned out to be the final score.
“We wanted to go to the next round and it was our fault why we weren’t secured,” Richards was quoted by the Observer. “When we went to Antigua we should have won and got three points and then we gave up a goal late in Guatemala. So we wanted to come here and get back the fans in the stadium.”
The Jamaicans will be joined by Mexico, the United States, Panama, Honduras and Costa Rica in the hexagonal.
“Now the real work starts,” Richards told the Observer. “Now is the crucial time, we can’t slip up like how we slip up in this round, we have to take care of the work early.”
Dane Richards could not have time one of his most memorable performances any better. Scott Bales/YCJ
Categories: Antigua and Barbuda, Caribbean, Guatemala, Jamaica, World Cup Qualifying
Tags: CONCACAF, Dane Richards, Jamaica Observer, New York Red Bulls, Reggae Boyz, Vancouver Whitecaps, World Cup qualifying
Loading ...
