In Guyana Wednesday night both Caribbean Football Union Semifinals ventured into overtime with Tempete of Haiti advancing via penalties against Trinidad’s Defence Force after a scoreless draw and the Puerto Rico Islanders scoring twice for a 3-1 victory against host Alpha United, clinching a record fourth consecutive appearance in the CONCACAF Champions League.
The Islanders are one of only three clubs that have now advanced to all four editions of the CCL, joining earlier qualifiers Isidro Metapan (El Salvador) and Olimpia (Honduras), who received a reprieve when the Belize champions, Defense Force, were withdrawn due to stadium standards. Cruz Azul (Mexico), Saprissa (Costa Rica) and Marathon (Honduras) are missing the tournament for the first time.
Tempete, meanwhile, is the first club from Haiti to advance to the tournament, a surprising development considering the devastation to the nation a year ago from the tragic earthquake. After the scoreless draw, they edged Defence Force 4-3 in the penalty kick tiebreaker. It was the second consecutive time the club advanced against a Trinidad side via penalties, downing Caledonia AIA 3-2 from the spot after the series finished level at 1-1 from matching 1-0 road wins.
With Defence Force facing Alpha United in the Third Place Game Friday before the Championship it leaves Trinidad on the verge of not having a representative in the Champions League for the first time after having two teams in the past two editions.
Puerto Rico opened the scoring in the semifinal Wednesday evening against Alpha United, who eliminated River Plate Puerto Rico 3-2 on aggregate in the previous round, with a goal in the 23rd minute from Matthew Bouraee, his second of the CFU campaign. Dwain Jacobs leveled for the hosts in the 37th and the match remained deadlocked until extra time.
Scoreless through the first overtime session, Jonathan Fana netted in the 108th and David Foley doubled the advantage to secure the victory in the 116th minute. It was the second goal in 2011 CFU play for both.
The Islanders look to claim their second consecutive CFU championship Friday after finishing third and second in their first two campaigns in the event.
In Canada
The second leg of the Nutrilite Canadian Championship was postponed to July 2 due to weather conditions. The news was unfortunate for the Vancouver Whitecaps, who were leading the match 1-0 and had pulled even on aggregate after falling 1-0 at home to Toronto FC the week before. The match at BMO Field was called due to lightning in the area and after initially being rescheduled for the next morning was completely postponed due to further weather concerns.
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