Christian Bolanos and substitute Ronald Ulate got second-half goals as a patient Costa Rica blanked T&T Soca Warriors 2-0 in their six-team Concacaf Final Round 2018 Russia World Cup qualifier at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo, last night.
Bolanos opened the scoring in the 65th minute with an easy tap in while Ulate scored on the stroke of full-time on a counter-attack with T&T sending numbers in attack in search of a leveler.
The visitors were first to settle and had the first chance on goal from a free-kick by Randall Corrales, which just went wide of T&T goalkeeper Jan-Michael Williams far post in the second minute after defender Carlyle Mitchell was whistled for a foul by Honduran referee Oscar Godoy.
Two minutes, it was T&T's turn to test the Central Americans down the left flank through speedy winger Cordell Cato, but after picking out Khaleem Hyland at the top of the 18-yard-box, the latter had his effort on his less fancied left foot charged down by the defence.
T&T then settled into a nice passing game with its attacks coming mainly through the wing plays of Cato and Joevin Jones.
And in the 12th minutes Jones was at the centre of T&T's next move as he weaved his way down the right and whipped in a low cross, which had the Costa Rican defence scrambling the ball away.
Cato was first to react to the loose ball inside the penalty-area, but after cleverly rounding his defender, his ball back across the goalmouth was cleared away.
Costa Rica almost caught T&T napping in the 16th minute through a quick move down the left side, however the whipped in ball from Christian Navarro, just failed to meet the head of an unmarked Bryan Ruiz.
Two minutes later, after a cleared corner by Costa Rica, Hyland whipped in a deep cross for defender Sheldon Bateau, who came up for the corner, but luckily for the visitors, the ball skimmed the head off the T&T player.
On the half-hour mark, midfielder Jomal Williams tried his luck with a scissors attempts from a Daneil Cyrus right sided cross, bu it failed to trouble Real Madrid and Costa Rica custodian Kaylor Navas.
Seven minutes before the half-time whistle, defender Kendall Manley had the visitors best chance of the half, but his powerful downward header at the back post was smartly pushed around the post for a corner.
On the resumption, T&T took the game to its opponents with speedy utility player, Joevin Jones, running at his defenders at will,
But the end result at most times was a corner who a ball across the goalmouth with no T&T player in sight.
Againts thr run of play, Costa Rico will take a 1-0 lead when a slick passing move down the right sided caught out the T&T defence and left winger Christian Gamboa with an easy task to tap the ball across the goalmouth past onrushing Williams and two defenders to an open Bolanos for a tap in in the 62nd minute.
Soca Warriors coach Stephen Hart responded with the introduction of England-based Andre Boucaud for Jomal Williams .
Carlyle Mitchell was then denied an equalizer for T&T with a low finger tip save from Navas, diving to his right, and within seconds at the other end, former Arsenal striker Joel Campbell, went inches wide of Jan-Michael Williams bottom left had corner as well as the match began to open up at both ends.
With ten minutes left in the contest coach Hart went for his last throw of the dice in striker Willis Plaza for captain Kenwyne Jones to the applause of the home crowd.
However, despite all of his eager running Plaza who plays locally for San Juan Jaboteh could not conjure up an equalizer for T&T as Ulate finished off a quick move by Bolanos by clipping the ball into the far corner pas Jan-Michael Williams as coach Hart's men fell to a first home defeat in their 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign and also stretched their winless run against Costa Rica in World Cup qualifiers to 11 matches, five away and six at home.
The T&T squad will now travel to Honduras later today for its second match in the six-team qualifying series on Tuesday. Honduras will also be looking for a win after a 1-0 loss at home to Panama in yesterday's early match. Last night USA hosted Mexico.
