Video: Coach Lightbourne Before Match vs Haiti
“We played Haiti two years ago and felt like we should have gotten something out of that match, so we’ll be up against them. It’s a one-off game, we have to leave everything on the pitch and give it all we’ve got,” Bermuda Head Coach Kyle Lightbourne said.
The Concacaf website said, “Bermuda’s first ever Concacaf Gold Cup match had its shares of highs and lows. Debuting in the tournament two years ago in the 2019 edition, the Gombey Warriors scored their first Gold Cup goal through Dante Leverock and held a 1-0 halftime lead over Haiti in their group stage opener.
“But the tables turned in the second half, with Les Grenadiers scoring twice through Frantzdy Pierrot to claim a 2-1 win over Bermuda.
Coach Kyle Lightbourne speaking at the press conference
“Now a little more than two years later, the same two teams will meet in the Second Round of the 2021 Gold Cup Prelims with a group stage berth at stake, and there is no doubt the sting of that defeat from two years ago is serving as part of Bermuda’s motivation for Tuesday’s contest.”
“We played Haiti two years ago and felt like we should have gotten something out of that match, so we’ll be up against them. It’s a one-off game, we have to leave everything on the pitch and give it all we’ve got,” said Bermuda Head Coach Kyle Lightbourne in his pre-match press conference.
A look back at the Bermuda vs Haiti match in the 2019 Gold Cup
“Looking at them, looking at their tapes, they’re strong, they play a different couple ways. They can wear you down with the ball, they can wear you down without the ball, so we have to be mentally ready and know the areas we want to attack. We’ve done some work on that and hopefully we get it right and take our chances. In the last match we didn’t take our chances against them, so we’re hoping that we can take our chances this time,” added Lightbourne.
“In that period of time since that 2019 tilt, Bermuda have grown together as a squad, and the time spent both on and off the field is expected to pay dividends.
“I think we got more experience, we’ve been together for a longer period and our players understand how they want to play, so I think we are more experienced,” concluded Lightbourne.
