In the opening game of their two-match friendly series, Jamaica’s Reggae Girlz endured a challenging outing, succumbing to a 5-1 defeat against Chile at the Juan Pinto Duran Stadium in Chile.
Chile set the pace early in the match, taking a commanding 2-0 lead by halftime with goals from Michelle Olivares in the 12th minute and Maria Jose Urrutia in the 22nd minute.
The relentless Chilean attack continued in the second half, as Yestin Jimenez and Yenny Acuna further extended their team’s lead to 4-0 with goals in the 61st and 70th minutes, respectively.
Asher managed to narrow the deficit
Despite the mounting pressure, Jamaica’s Chinyelu Asher managed to narrow the deficit for the Reggae Girlz with a well-taken penalty in the 77th minute, notching her seventh international goal for Jamaica.
However, any hopes of a comeback were dashed when Paloma Duarte sealed the victory for Chile, adding another goal in the 88th minute to make it 5-1.
With the disappointing result in the first match, the Reggae Girlz will look to regroup and bounce back in the second game of the series scheduled for Tuesday. The team will aim to address their defensive vulnerabilities and capitalize on scoring opportunities to put up a stronger performance against Chile in their next encounter.
