Undercooked and lacking cohesiveness, the Jamaica Under-20 men’s football team was always up against it at the Concacaf Championship in Honduras.

But the players and coaching staff courageously defied the odds and also rode their luck at times en route to the quarter-finals before being outworked and outperformed in the 0-1 loss to the Dominican Republic on Wednesday.

The stakes were high — a victory would have sent Jamaica into the Fifa Under-20 World Cup for only a second time after qualification for the 2001 edition. In the end, Angel Montes De Oca’s classy 10th-minute strike gave his team one of four regional berths to the global showpiece.

During the tournament’s group stage, the Jamaicans ended 1-1 with Costa Rica, then, while playing a man down for the entire second half, were hammered 0-5 in wet and soggy conditions against hosts Honduras before beating Antigua and Barbuda 2-0 to advance to the round of 16.

There the Marcel Gayle-coached team clipped nine-man Haiti 2-1 in unconvincing fashion on Sunday before falling to Dominican Republic.

By contrast, the Dominican Republic team reached the Concacaf Championship after competing in qualifiers last November. Having progressed from that qualification tournament, they were among four teams — the others were Curacao, Nicaragua, and Puerto Rico — to receive a bye to the Concacaf Championship’s round of 16.

Dominican Republic then outscored El Salvador 5-4 in dramatic fashion to advance to the quarter-finals.

Former national youth Coach Davion Ferguson felt the young Reggae Boyz were thrown in the lion’s den.

“I think a grave injustice was done to the players involved [because] the preparation was poor,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

“Players were constantly being given to the coach, even days before the tournament. He didn’t know his best 11 heading into the tournament. He started the first two games playing a 4-2-3-1 [formation] and ended the last three playing a 3-5-2, a clear indication of the coach learning about his team and players at the tournament.

“The players looked lost, but you can’t blame them. Even after being given the easiest route a team could be given, we still couldn’t do it because our preparation heading into the tournament was insufficient,” Ferguson, who has coached in the Under-15, Under-17, Under-20 Reggae Girlz set-ups as well as the Under-17 and Under-20 Boyz, said.

He said their downfall was not for lack of individual talent.

“We had enough quality within this age group to qualify this cycle, but we dropped the ball. This is not surprising, it’s the way of operating with this current [Jamaica Football Federation] administration. We lacked a clear direction… [and] we will always be in this position because the modus operandi is to prepare teams only when there is a tournament around the corner,” Ferguson, the coach of schoolboy side Jamaica College, argued.

“They [Dominican Republic] are not better than us individually, but collectively they showed us up. The writing was always on the wall as we struggled against Haiti even with nine men. I honestly didn’t expect us to qualify because I understand and respect the process,” he said.

Andrew Price, the former senior Reggae Girlz assistant coach, also felt the Jamaica Under-20 men’s team was underprepared.

“Dom Rep outplayed Jamaica throughout the game,” he said.

“They looked hungrier, they played with a lot of composure and confidence. They look like a team that was properly prepared and showed great team chemistry.

“We looked jaded and lethargic. We rarely showed the appetite for the game. Even after conceding we didn’t take the game to Dom Rep. We should have pressed them a lot higher up the park. Additionally, we needed to have more combination plays through their lines,” Price, who coaches Humble Lion in Jamaica’s top-tier club league, told the Observer.

“The Dom Rep players showed great individual skills, especially the captain, [Edison Azcona], who bossed the middle of the pitch. Their defensive unit was calm and composed. But that came with great preparation and the understanding that their team has developed over time.

“Our preparation was insufficient and inadequate. We played no international practice games and our period of time together as a team was much too limited. This we understand is a function of a lack of available resources. But if you don’t prepare properly these are the results you will get.

“The team seemed to have gelled as the competition progressed. I personally think they overachieved to be within a game of qualifying for the World Cup. We can’t fault them on fighting spirit, but sometimes that is just not good enough against better-prepared teams,” he said.

The other regional teams to qualify for the Indonesia 2023 World Cup by virtue of progressing to the semi-finals are Guatemala, Honduras, and the Concacaf Championship back-to-back title holders United States. Notably, Mexico, the 13-time regional Under-20 champions, lost 1-2 in penalty shoot-out to Guatemala after both were locked 1-1 at the end of regulation and extra time in their quarter-final contest.

— Sanjay Myers