clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Report: Guyana challenges Barbados striker’s eligibility for 2019-20 CONCACAF Nations League Qualifying

Before Carlisle United’s Hallam Hope was a Barbados international, he was an England youth-teamer. The Guyana Football Federation thinks this might be a problem.

Carlisle United v Northampton Town - Sky Bet League Two Photo by Pete Norton/Getty Images

CONCACAF Nations League Qualifying won’t be back until March, when the final round of games will be played and the qualifiers for both 2019-20 Nations League and 2019 Gold Cup will be confirmed.

Guyana has found an interesting way to pass the time: challenging the result of its 2-2 draw with Barbados back in September. Rawle Toney reports for the Guyana Chronicle that the Guyana Football Federation has questioned the eligibility of Barbados’ Hallam Hope for that match.

Hope scored both Barbados’ goals in the game, so he was hardly insignificant to the result. But some close observers aren’t entirely convinced Guyana has a case:

The merits of Guyana’s complaint will presumably be decided by CONCACAF in due course.

If the Golden Jaguars do persuade CONCACAF to void the 2-2 draw and award a 3-0 win by forfeit to Guyana, it would change the current CNL Qualifying picture significantly. Guyana currently has four points from three games and is a longshot to make Gold Cup - but turning a 2-2 draw into a 3-0 win would bounce the Golden Jaguars up to 8th in the qualifying table with six points and a +10 goal difference.

With a winnable home game against Belize coming up in the concluding round of qualifiers, Guyana would suddenly look like a solid contender for a place at the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

The GFF president, Wayne Ford, told the Guyana Chronicle a statement would be issued in the “near future”.