Portland Timbers winger Darren Mattocks scored a wonderful volley as he and Jamaica beat Curacao 2-0 Sunday in the Reggae Boyz's opening match of the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup. It was Mattock's 13th goal for Jamaica at the international level and it was his third goal in the Gold Cup in his last three appearances going back to 2015.
Timbers teammate Alvas Powell started and played 83 minutes in the match while Mattocks came off the bench in the 59th minute.
The win puts the Reggae Boyz in a tie on points atop Group C with Mexico though El Tri leads on goals scored. Jamaica will next play on Wednesday, July 13 (7:30pm PT, FS1).
- MLSsoccer.com: Boehm writes about Mattocks and tournament play
- READ: Gold Cup schedule for Timbers players in the tournament
On Friday, Timbers midfielder David Guzmán helped Costa Rica to a 1-0 win over Honduras in their opening Gold Cup match. Guzmán started and played the full 90 in the match and was a key part of the Ticos attack. He led his team with three shots and took eight corner kicks in the match as well.
Guzmán nearly scored in the 55th minute with a curling free kick that was barely tipped away by Honduras goalkeeper Luis López.
How close was @DavidGuzmanCR to a goal tonight for #CRC? Have a look. 👀 #RCTID#GoldCup2017#LaSelepic.twitter.com/Ly4y1EVCem
— Portland Timbers (@TimbersFC) July 8, 2017
Costa Rica is currently tied with Canada for the top spot in Group A with the Canadians holding a slight edge on goals scored. Guzmán and the Ticos are back in action on July 11 against Canada in their second match of the group stage (4:30pm PT, FS1).
