DESPERATE to atone for its 2010 World Cup qualification disappointment, nothing but victory will appease the Reggae Boyz, who will line up against Grenada in the final of the Digicel Caribbean Championship, tomorrow at the National Stadium, starting at 6 p.m.
"Come Sunday we want to step out there and lift the trophy," Jamaica's captain Tyrone Marshall told The Gleaner in an interview. "If we weren't to win this competition, it'd be very disappointing."
The Jamaicans advanced to the final on Thursday night, when they eliminated Guadeloupe 2-0 in the semi-finals at the National Stadium.
Their opponents will be long shot Grenada, which ousted Cuba in a penalty shoot-out, following a 2-2 regulation and extra-time scoreline.
Besides grabbing the championship trophy, its first place cash award of US$150,000 and bragging rights in the region, Marshall said the Caribbean title would be some form of redemption for the country's World Cup elimination, in the semi-final round of CONCACAF qualifying last month.
"The qualifiers are over, we didn't make it through, it's a big disappointment but we've somewhere to redeem ourselves by winning this tournament and move on," he said.
Open doors
Commenting further on the significance of winning the Digicel Championships, Marshall, a versatile player who represents Toronto FC in the Major League Soccer tournament, pointed out that a Jamaican victory could open doors to sponsorship for the national programme.
"It definitely makes it important because the sponsors will see that we're still winning games and we're still doing well and, hopefully, that can bring them aboard because this is a big tournament in the Caribbean," he said.
"So it's really important for us from a federation standpoint, as well as the team's perspective because going forward next year for the Gold Cup people can come on board and help us with our preparation for the Gold Cup and other international matches."
Jamaica and the other Digicel Caribbean Championships semi-finalists, Grenada, Guadeloupe and Cuba, all qualified for the Gold Cup, CONCACAF's flagship tournament, which also includes the leading teams from North and Central America. It will be hosted by the United States in mid-year, 2009.