The men’s under-20 national football teams from Anguilla and Guyana have been disqualified from the Concacaf U-20 Qualifiers following a violent match brawl.
The Concacaf Disciplinary Committee announced several sanctions as a result of the incident involving several players at the end of the game on Saturday, 28 February.
As part of the competition disqualification, the teams will have to forfeit their remaining matches which will be recorded as 3-0 defeats in favour of their respective opponents.
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“Undisclosed fines” were also administered and four-match suspensions were issued to players from both teams, Concacaf said in a press release on 2 March.
The Anguilla players are Keondre Belle, Keante Brooks, Shemor Browne, Khalique Jackson and Cardinae Rennie, while the Guyana players are Mateo Clark, Shaquan David, Sheldon Kendall and Max Robinson.
The suspended players must each serve their four-match suspensions during the following official matches of their representative team in the same age group in a Concacaf or FIFA competition.
Where the suspension cannot be served in the same age group, they will be carried over to the next highest age category in a Concacaf or FIFA competition, the press release said.
The game in question took place at the Stadion Rignaal ‘Jean’ Francisca, Willemstad in Curaçao, and saw Anguilla concede five goals by the 56th minute.
Anguilla’s Mekhi Connor was shown a late red card in the 86th minute, after which verbal exchanges and jostling between players from both teams escalated into a broader altercation.
In a statement, the Guyana Football Federation said all Guyanese players and staff returned safely to their hotel, and there were no reports of any serious injuries arising from the incident.
It added that it remains “committed to the principles of fair play, respect, and discipline that underpin the game”.
Meanwhile, the Anguilla Football Association said it “does not condone this type of behaviour under any circumstances” and remains committed to high standards of sportsmanship, respect and professionalism.
“The Anguilla Football Association remains steadfast in its commitment to integrity, accountability, and the continued development of football in Anguilla,” it added in a statement.
After reviewing the evidence and documentation gathered during its investigation, the committee declared the match a forfeit in favour of Guyana and the 5-0 score stands.
“This decision was taken after Anguilla received five red cards, leaving the team with fewer players than the minimum required under laws of the game to continue the match,” Concacaf said.
Anguilla sits at the bottom of Group D with zero points after a 6-0 loss to St Vincent and the Grenadines, a 7-0 loss to Haiti and the latest 5-0 loss to Guyana.
