The Bermuda Senior Men’s National Team suffered a narrow 3-2 defeat against the Dominican Republic in their opening match of the 2024 Concacaf Nations League 4.0 on Saturday, September 7th, 2024. The match took place at the ABFA Technical Center in Antigua and Barbuda with a kick-off time of 12 PM AST (Bermuda).
In the 17th minute, Bermuda took the lead when Kane Crichlow converted a well-placed cross from the left flank, giving Bermuda a 1-0 lead. The Dominican Republic responded and equalized shortly before halftime, leaving the match all even at 1-1.
Bermuda continued to press forward in the second half, and regained the lead in the 51st minute. Reggie Lambe found the back of the net with a deflected shot from the left side of the box. Unfortunately, the Dominican Republic responded with two goals of their own to secure the victory.
Head Coach Michael Findlay: "It is extremely disappointing to suffer another cruel lesson in international football given we created enough chances to gain the full 3 points and, in the end, we get no points," he said. "It is frustrating for all of the team as we have seen improvement on a number of levels, as we continue to focus on being better each time we play, but that must come with results in the end."
Findlay also acknowledged the team's defensive lapses that contributed to their downfall. "Once again, we put ourselves in a position to be successful but did not execute on the final act," he continued. "But then we committed basic errors that provided our opponents opportunity, and they were clinical when they needed to be. We now need to recover physically and emotionally and prepare for Antigua and Barbuda. It is essential that we get points to keep this group wide open as we look to gain as many points as possible over the next match and the October and November windows. Then see where we are."
The Bermuda team will now turn their attention to their upcoming match against Antigua and Barbuda on Tuesday, September 10th at 5 PM AST (Bermuda) at the ABFA Technical Center. A victory in that match is crucial for Bermuda's hopes of progressing in the 2024 Concacaf Nations League.