2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Group C, round 1, round-up: Jamaica and Mexico start with wins

The opening round of games in Group C of the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup were held at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium on July 9.

Curacao 0-2 Jamaica

The opening game of Group C of the 2017 Gold Cup was a re-match of the 2017 Caribbean Cup final. Curacao won the Caribbean title, but a re-tooled Reggae Boyz avenged that loss with a hard-fought win in San Diego.

Jamaica 'keeper Andre Blake had to work hard to keep his team in it, but his teammates repaid his efforts with two second-half goals. Romario Williams conjured a goal from a seemingly improbably angle in the 58th minute; Darren Mattocks added the second in the 73rd.

El Salvador 1-3 Mexico

After 10 minutes, the score in this game was 1-1 and it seemed possible that El Salvador might prove an unexpectedly well-match opponent for El Tri. But Elias Hernandez put Mexico ahead in the 29th minute and the Group C favorite never really looked back. Orbelin Pineda made the game sage for Mexico in the 55th minute.

Hernandez had a big game, scoring one and assisting on El Tri's other two goals. Mexico has sent a B-team to this Gold Cup, but it is expected to be too strong for its group-stage opponents. This game supported that hypothesis.

Group C is back in action on July 13 in Denver. El Salvador and Curacao will play first, followed by Jamaica and Mexico.