The Reggae Boyz slipped farther away from Qatar’s FIFA 2022 World Cup Finals after going down 2-1 to Mexico at the National Stadium in Kingston on Thursday night.
The home side was reduced to ten men on the stroke of halftime when central defender Damion Lowe to ejected by Salvadoran referee Ismael Cornejo for a robust challenge on an opponent, which caught the attention of VAR operated by American Allen Chapman.
But even with a low number, the hosts went ahead through Daniel Johnson in the 50th-minute, only for substitute Henry Martin, who scored an 89th-minute winner in the reverse fixture in September, to pull his team level on 81 minutes.
Then two minutes later, Ernesto Vega found the winner, which condemned Jamaica to virtual elimination.
In other games, Canada defeated Honduras 2-0; the USA edged El Salvador 1-0, and Costa Rica did a similar job on Panama.
Canada remains atop the final round points standings with 19 points, one ahead of the US, with Mexico next on 17 points. Panama remains on 14, with Costa Rica inching up to 12 points, with Jamaica next on seven, El Salvador on six, and Honduras on three points.
The top three teams on points at the end of the campaign will punch their tickets to Qatar for the World Cup Finals, while the fourth-placed team will earn the right to challenge for another place at the World Cup Finals.
Interim head coach Paul Hall, who replaced Theodore Whitmore last month, had claimed that it was down to the players’ mindset to get a positive result against the regional powerhouse.
But the first 45 minutes were void of the requisite mindset needed to impact a game of this magnitude.
And after the ejection of Lowe, the task became much more difficult, as a team under pressure and needing to win to keep hopes alive was now asked to compete with fewer players on the pitch.
That was never going to be easy, and though Jamaica took the lead through Johnson early in the second half, Mexico piled on the pressure, which eventually paid dividends with the two late goals.
The Reggae Boyz are expected into Panama City on Friday, ahead of Sunday’s match. They are also down to engage Costa Rica on Wednesday.
