In a tightly contested showdown at Barbados’ Wildey Astroturf, Saint Lucia’s senior men’s national football team extended their winning run to three consecutive matches in the Concacaf Nations League, notching a second straight victory over Guadeloupe with a 1-0 scoreline on Monday afternoon.
The match’s turning point came early, courtesy of 22-year-old free-agent striker Kegan Caull, who emerged as Saint Lucia’s undisputed difference-maker. Just five minutes into the contest, Caull shook off his marking defender and slotted home the only goal of the game, a finish that propelled the side nicknamed the Piton Boyz to the top of Group B. Caull’s hot form did not start on Monday, either: he recorded two assists in Friday’s 3-0 rout of Guadeloupe, and had previously netted a hat-trick in a 5-2 home win over Bermuda earlier in the campaign.
Piton Boyz head coach Rajesh Latchoo made two enforced changes to his starting lineup ahead of Monday’s match, withdrawing Shevon Byron — the 2025 Saint Lucia Junior Player of the Year who was substituted off early on Friday — and Melvin Doxilly, both of whom picked up minor injuries in the first encounter against Guadeloupe. Gregson President and Ajani Louis stepped into the starting XI as their replacements.
Weather created a starkly different playing environment for the second matchup between the two sides. Three days after battling through sweltering heat, the teams took the pitch under heavy rain in Barbados. Guadeloupe controlled most of the possession throughout the 90 minutes, and outshot Saint Lucia 11 attempts to six. However, the Piton Boyz made their chances count: they put four of their six shots on target, while Guadeloupe failed to register a single on-target effort.
Following the final whistle, Latchoo expressed pride in his squad’s resilience through a demanding fixture schedule. “We’re proud of the boys. They went out there, they played for the country,” he said. “We asked them to stick it out. This was a unique challenge for them, but it’s preparation for the Gold Cup and bigger tournaments, because playing the same team twice in a four-day turnaround is a good challenge, and it was good playing four games in that time period, managing their freshness. They’re being able to manage themselves to make sure that they give a great effort and a performance on the field.”
Monday’s win pushed Saint Lucia up to nine points, putting them atop the Group B standings. Heading into the matchday, host Barbados had held the top spot with eight points, one point ahead of Saint Lucia’s six, and Barbados was scheduled to face winless Bermuda later on Monday. Ranked 28th among Concacaf national sides, Saint Lucia has already posted an impressive run of results this campaign: one win over 24th-ranked Bermuda and two victories over 15th-ranked Guadeloupe.
The final group qualifying window is scheduled for the second week of November, set to take place in Bermuda. Saint Lucia will first rematch Bermuda, then close out their group stage campaign against Barbados. Latchoo has already bolstered his squad twice during the campaign: he added Arkell Jude-Boyd following an early home loss to Barbados, then called up Donavan Phillip for the two matches against Guadeloupe, and he could have even more selection options available for the decisive November fixtures, when the fight for the group title and a Gold Cup qualifying spot will still be open.
Looking ahead to the next qualifying cycle, Latchoo outlined his side’s next steps. “Next is recover for the next cycle. So, we’re going into the cycle now; they go back to their clubs, we monitor them, we work with the local players, and we make sure the foreign players go back in one piece and healthy so that we can get them back for November,” he said. “And again, [the goal is] three points, three points, six points again.”