In a stunning display of attacking dominance at the 2026 Caribbean Football Union (CFU) U-14 Boys Challenge Tournament, Haiti’s youth national team – nicknamed the Young Grenadiers – secured their spot in the championship final with a lopsided 6-1 victory over hosts Dominican Republic on August 21. The semi-final clash, held at Los Establos in Cap Cana’s Punta Cana region, saw Haiti take control of the game from the opening kickoff, never relinquishing their upper hand en route to a historic spot in the title decider.
Led by head coach and technical director Jean Marc Alexandre, Haiti’s starting 11 featured a lineup of homegrown talent from top Haitian youth clubs, with captain Cédric Claremond of Les Rouleurs FC anchoring the side. The Grenadiers broke the deadlock just 60 seconds into the match, when Jerry Petit-Homme of FC Toro unleashed a powerful long-range strike from midfield that slipped through the gloves of Dominican goalkeeper Ricardo Sang, putting Haiti ahead 1-0.
Haiti doubled their lead just four minutes later. Wensley Dumorne collected a loose pass on the left edge of the Dominican penalty area, cut inside to create space, and fired a clinical finish into the far corner of the net to make the score 2-0. The young Haitian side extended their advantage in the 25th minute, when Jodley Sheeckensley Delmas capitalized on a poor defensive clearance outside the box, hammering a low shot past Sang to put Haiti up 3-0.
The Dominican Republic got their only goal of the match three minutes later, when forward Pedro Ramirez converted a rebound after Haitian starting goalkeeper Marc-Evens Lubin parried an initial shot on goal, cutting the deficit to 3-1. But Haiti restored their three-goal advantage before halftime, when Eddyson Paul-Jean intercepted a short backpass to Sang and rounded the goalkeeper to slot home, making the score 4-1 at the break.
Coming out of the halftime interval, the Grenadiers continued their attacking pressure. Dumorne notched his second goal of the game in the 41st minute, pushing the score to 5-1, and Haiti sealed the win with a 52nd-minute penalty. Ronelson Pelé Janvier converted the spot kick after a Dominican defender handled the ball in the area, closing out the 6-1 rout.
For Haiti, this semi-final victory books a spot in the August 23 grand final against Jamaica’s U-14 Reggae Boyz. It also marks a major milestone for the country’s youth soccer program: Haiti lifted the CFU U-14 Challenge trophy in both 2021 and 2022, and the team has now achieved its pre-tournament goal of reaching the final to defend those past titles. Throughout the 2026 tournament, the Grenadiers have posted strong results, including wins over French Guiana, Trinidad and Tobago, with their only group stage loss coming against Puerto Rico’s Huracanes Azul.
The all-Haitian technical staff, led by Alexandre, has emphasized developing homegrown young talent throughout the tournament, setting the stage for a highly anticipated title clash with Jamaica this weekend.