Dominican Republic 6 Bermuda 1

Dorny Romero scored four goals to secure Dominican Republic’s historic qualification for the Gold Cup, ending Bermuda’s four-match winning streak in the Nations League.

Romero found the net in the 33rd, 69th, 90th and 94th minutes, handing Michael Findlay’s side their heaviest defeat of this year’s competition. Jean López and the outstanding Heinz Mörschel also added to the tally.

Bermuda’s lone goal came from Djair Parfitt-Williams in first-half stoppage time.

The victory saw Dominican Republic finish top of League B’s Group D with a perfect 18 points from six matches. Bermuda secured second place on 12 points, keeping their Gold Cup hopes alive as they head to the preliminary round next year alongside St Vincent & the Grenadines as one of the two best runners-up from League B.

Their path to the Gold Cup, though, will have to run through Honduras, who inflicted an identical heavy defeat on the Gombey Warriors — but on home soil in a World Cup qualifier at the Flora Duffy Stadium.

Those matches will be played during the Fifa international match window between March 18 and 26.

Findlay felt the scoreline did not reflect his players’ fighting spirit during much of the encounter.

“I don’t think you can come away from a game like that and not be disappointed given the scoreline,” Findlay told The Royal Gazette. “However, we look at it slightly differently. I think the scoreline was a little lopsided because we capitulated near the end.

“We’ve been in such situations before, and the lessons learnt this evening are deep-rooted. We know what we need to do to improve, and that involves things we do beyond the national team level.

“From an optimistic side, the staff and I are really pleased with the fighting mentality we saw tonight. That’s something we’ve been trying to instil in these players over time, and I think it was evident.

“We were a much more physical side. We were more combative and stood up to being pushed around, which I think was a positive step.

“We had moments in the game but not enough. We’ll review our performance and plan once we know who we’re playing in the Gold Cup preliminary round.

“We need to go back and focus on the finer details, both individually and as a team.”

The Canadian coach drew parallels to Bermuda’s loss against Honduras in June.

“It was very similar to the Honduras game; you could see that some physical conditioning issues remain,” Findlay said.

“You can’t take anything away from Dominican Republic. They’re well-organised, technically gifted, well-coached, and physically prepared because all their players compete at a high level of professional football globally.

“It’s similar to the matches against Honduras and Guinea. You see where you stand when playing these types of games.

“We seem to put in good minutes but can’t sustain them. That’s something we need to address, and we can only do that by focusing on individual players’ commitment to preparation and excellence.”

Dominican Republic’s dominance paid off when Romero broke the deadlock just after the half-hour mark. A well-placed through ball from Mörschel allowed Romero to outpace Seke Spence and slot past goalkeeper Detre Bell.

Bermuda equalised just before the break when Parfitt-Williams capitalised on a defensive lapse. Mörschel brought down Reggie Lambe, and Zeiko Lewis’s free kick was fumbled by goalkeeper Xavier Valdez. Parfitt-Williams reacted quickly to tap in and level the score.

Romero restored Dominican Republic’s lead in the 69th minute, heading home Junior Firpo’s corner. López extended the advantage to 3-1 six minutes later, finishing off a quick corner routine with Mörschel providing the assist.

Despite holding firm for much of the match, Bermuda’s defence collapsed in the final stages, conceding three goals in eight minutes. Mörschel, the standout player on the pitch, added his name to the scoresheet in the 87th minute.

Romero completed his hat-trick after Firpo drew Bell off his line, before netting his fourth goal deep into stoppage time, bringing Dominican Republic’s campaign tally to 23 goals.

SCORERS

Dominican Republic: Romero 33, 69, 90, 90+4, López 75, Mörschel 87

Bermuda: Parfitt-Williams 45+2

TEAMS

Dominican Republic (3-4-3): Z Valdez – L Lucas, C Schoissengeyr, M Sambataro (J Pineda, 84min) – J Urbáez (sub: M Beltre, 77) J López (sub:, Á de Oca, 84), H Mörschel, J Firpo – E Azcona (sub: E Reyes, 69), D Romero, R Vásquez (sub: R Núñez, 69). Substitutes not used: M Lloyd, B López, L Bretón, E Japa, A Ciriaco, G de Peña, P Ramírez. Booked: J López.

Bermuda (4-2-3-1): D Bell – R Jones, D Leverock, H Twite, S Spence – R Lee (sub: N Tucker, 70), K Martin – K Crichlow (sub: K Scott, 88), Z Lewis (sub: R Coddington, 76), D Parfitt-Williams (sub: B Hall, 76) – R Lambe (sub: D Jones, 88). Substitutes not used: J Carpenter, A Todd, J Hill, L Lewis Jr, L Robinson, M Perott.

Referee: J Melendez (El Salvador).