1994 Caribbean Cup

1994 Caribbean Cup
Tournament details
Host country Trinidad and Tobago
Teams 21 (from 1 confederation)
Final positions
Champions  Trinidad and Tobago (3rd title)
Runners-up  Martinique
Third place  Guadeloupe

The Shell Caribbean Cup 1994 was the sixth edition of the Caribbean Cup, the football championship of the Caribbean, one of the CONCACAF zones. The final stage was hosted by Trinidad and Tobago.

Qualifying Tournament

Regulation

A strange rule was imposed in the qualifying tournament: every match must have a winner. If the two teams make a draw in 90 minutes, then they go to a sudden death extra time, where the golden goal will be counted as two goals. If no team scores in the extra time, then they go to the penalty shootout to determine the winner.

Group 1

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA
 Barbados 3210143
 Grenada 3210144
 Puerto Rico 3210112

Jan 23, 1994
Barbados  0 - 1  Puerto Rico

Jan 25, 1994
Grenada  2 - 0 (asdet )  Puerto Rico

Jan 27, 1994
Barbados  4 - 2 (asdet )  Grenada

Anomaly

Grenada went into the match with a superior goal difference, meaning that Barbados needed to win by two goals to progress to the finals. The trouble was caused by two things. First, unlike most group stages in football competitions, the organizers had deemed that all games must have a winner. All games drawn over 90 minutes would go to sudden death extra time. Secondly and most importantly, there was an unusual rule which stated that in the event of a game going to sudden death extra time the goal would count double, meaning that the winner would be awarded a two goal victory.

Barbados was leading 2-0 until the 83rd minute, when Grenada scored, making it 2-1. Approaching the dying moments, the Barbadians realized they had little chance of scoring past Grenada's mass defense in the time available, so they deliberately scored an own goal to tie the game at 2-2. This would send the game into extra time and give them another half hour to break down the defense. The Grenadians realized what was happening and attempted to score an own goal as well, which would put Barbados back in front by one goal and would eliminate Barbados from the competition.

However, the Barbados players started defending their opposition's goal to prevent them from doing this, and during the game's last five minutes, the fans were treated to the incredible sight of Grenada trying to score in either goal while Barbados defended both ends of the pitch. Barbados successfully held off Grenada for the final five minutes, sending the game into extra time. In extra time, Barbados notched the game-winner, and, according to the rules, was awarded a 4-2 victory, which put them through to the next round.[1][2][3]

Group 2

Played in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA
 Guadeloupe 62200110
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 3210122
 Anguilla 02002011

Group 3

Played in Suriname

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA
 Suriname 6220040
 French Guiana 3210123
 Guyana 0200214


Suriname  2 - 0 (asdet )  French Guiana


Guyana  1 - 1 (asdet)
(4 - 5 pen.)
 French Guiana


Suriname  2 - 0  Guyana

Group 4

Played in Saint Kitts and Nevis

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA
 Dominica 6220074
 Saint Kitts and Nevis 32101115
 Antigua and Barbuda 32101103
 Montserrat 02002117

Since the winner of this match is surely to have more goal difference than Dominica, and since Dominica did appear in the final tournament, it is most likely that the match was never played.


Dominica  (cancelled)  Montserrat

The match between was cancelled because of crowd trouble.

Group 5

Played in Cayman Islands

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA
 Cayman Islands 93300132
 Jamaica 63201185
 Sint Maarten 3310259
 British Virgin Islands 03003020


Jamaica  4 - 2 (asdet )  Sint Maarten

Group 6

 Cuba withdrew.

Final tournament

First round

Played in Trinidad and Tobago.

Group A

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
 Trinidad and Tobago 7321070+7
 Guadeloupe 5312072+5
 Barbados 2302135-2
 Dominica 13012111-10

April 7, 1994
Barbados  1 - 1  Dominica

April 9, 1994
Guadeloupe  5 - 0  Dominica

April 11, 1994
Trinidad and Tobago  5 - 0  Dominica

April 11, 1994
Guadeloupe  2 - 2  Barbados

Group B

Team Pts Pld W D L GF GA GD
 Martinique 7321061+5
 Suriname 43111330
 Haiti 4311146-2
 Cayman Islands 1301236-3

April 7, 1994
Haiti  3 - 2  Cayman Islands

April 7, 1994
Martinique  2 - 0  Suriname

April 9, 1994
Martinique  3 - 0  Haiti

April 9, 1994
Suriname  2 - 0  Cayman Islands

April 11, 1994
Martinique  1 - 1  Cayman Islands

April 11, 1994
Suriname  1 - 1  Haiti

Semi-finals

14 April 1994
Trinidad and Tobago  3 - 2 (asdet)  Suriname
Marvin Faustin (2)
Arnold Dwarika
Clyde Tol
Ramon Kampenaar


3rd place match

Final

April 17, 1994
Trinidad and Tobago  7 – 2  Martinique
Thomas  46'
Charles ,
Pacheco , ,
Eve
report Fondelot
Sophie


Winner of Caribbean Cup 1994:


Trinidad and Tobago
Third Title

Haitian national team defection attempt

Many in the Haitian national team did not want to return to Haiti following the events of the 1991 Haitian coup d'état where Army General Raoul Cédras had led a military coup. Several Haitian players had criticized the coup d'état on a Miami-based radio station and their messages had been played in Haiti. Guy Delva was a journalist who was reporting on the Haitian players at the time said "I'm wondering if they really understand the gravity of the statements they made" and it was felt by some that the players and their immediate families were in danger. Following the Haitian team's exit from the competition, sixteen members of the national football team sought political asylum at the U.S. Embassy in Port of Spain on 14 April. They were told by embassy officials to apply from Haiti or the United States. Goalkeeper Jacques Tomaney claimed that six of his friends had already been killed in Haiti. Upon being told to return to Haiti, defender Patrick Nertilus said "We are very happy to be going home. We are the stars in our country".[4]

References

  1. Football Follies: A soccer team advanced in a cup match by deliberately scoring against itself.: snopes.com article.
  2. Longmore, Andrew. in Sport "Absurd Cup Rule Obscures Football's Final Goal." 1 February 1994.
  3. The Guardian. "Sixth Column." 5 February 1994 (Sports; p. 17). Made of CFU (Caribbean Football Union)
  4. Viglucci, Andres (20 April 1994). "Turned away by U.S., Haitian athletes will have to face the music at home.". Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service. Retrieved 3 February 2014.