The Reggae Boyz Take the Yard
By Dwayne Anderson

During Labor Day Ca’nival weekend in Brooklyn, NY, in between all of the fetes and the floats, some incredible Caribbean football can be found. Starting the last Sunday in May and culminating on Labor Day Sunday, friendly matches are played Sunday afternoons at Jefferson High School Field, Brooklyn between teams representing Caribbean countries.

The event dubbed as the ‘Caribbean Cup’ provides both spectacle and sportsmanship for energetic fans on hand. This year's final featured the Reggae Boyz from Jamaica and the Sugar Boyz from St. Kitts and Nevis. The Reggae Boyz dominated the match and defeated the Sugar Boyz 1-0 on a Damion Powell goal at the 23rd minute mark to take the championship.

En route to the Cup title, the Reggae Boyz beat Barbados 4-0, tied Columbia 1-1, routed Dominica 8-1, and tied with Antigua and Barbuda 1-1 in the preliminary round. In the quarterfinals they tied with Haiti 2-2, and beat St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) 1-0 in the semifinals.

When Island Vibes spoke with the Jamaican coach, Arthur 'Jetty' Mikes, at halftime, he told us that the team had specific instructions to “…keep the ball away from one or two [St. Kitts and Nevis]players… to keep more possession of the ball…”. They did just that and in doing so came away with a victory and record tying fifth Cup win… sharing the record with only SVG.

(Dwayne Anderson is Editor-in-Chief and contributor to Island Vibes Magazine and writes about Caribbean culture, business, sports, entertainment, and social issues, from his perspective. For comments, please feel free to contact him at dwayne@islandvibesmag.com.)