CONCACAF Gold Cup 2015 Final: Mexico 3-1 Jamaica
Jamaica coach Michael Hector
“I wanted to watch them lift the trophy to make me realize what I’ve done and make me feel that I don’t want to be in that situation ever again in my life, to hopefully win this tournament in the future,” a composed Hector told reporters. “…I wanted to feel the pain of what it feels like to lose in a final.”
“I’m gutted for the players,” he added. “I said in the changing room that I’m sorry for the mistakes that cost the goals. They didn’t deserve this in the final.”
“I told my players, ‘Thank you for your work for Jamaica. It’s not a silver medal. It’s a gold medal. Only a small group gave this team a shot. I am very proud to be the coach of this team.”
“They’ve got something in football that they can be proud of. They turn the TV on today in Jamaica and they see us and they know how much pride and how much passion we have for the country. I hope they take this as a big positive milestone. Hopefully they’ll be cheering us on in [Russia 2018] as well.”
Andres Guardado was named winner of the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup’s Golden Ball:
Guardado was the tournament’s most outstanding player. The announcement was made Sunday after the Tricolor defeated Jamaica 3-1 in the final at Lincoln Financial Field.
The 28-year-old was largely responsible for helping his team to a record-extending seventh title, scoring a team-high six goals, including the conversion of key penalty kicks in knockout round wins over Costa Rica and Panama.
He scored the first goal in the tournament decider against the Caribbean champion, volleying home Paul Aguilar’s cross to become the first player in Gold Cup history to net in three finals (also doing so in 2007 and 2011).
