Bermuda Under-20s 0 Rough Riders 2In less than a fortnight Gary Darrell's Under-20s head to Surinam for three of the most important matches for a Bermuda national football team in recent years.Their mission: to claim the final qualifying berth for the 12-team Concacaf Championships which would see them face regional powerhouses Mexico, United States and Jamaica in Guatemala in April.Standing in their way are hosts Surinam, Guyana and Netherland Antilles who, like Bermuda, finished as runners-up in their respective qualifying groups earlier this year.Bermuda's preparations may not have gone to exact plan with two defeats against Long Island Rough Riders, but Darrell's side should still be cautiously optimistic of finishing top of their qualifying group .They held their own against a more experienced, solid-looking Rough Riders team for long periods at Somerset Cricket Club on New Year's Day. At least, that is, until the 70th minute when the visitors broke the deadlock.Moments before the opener Darrell had understandably shuffled his selection pack to give his fringe players a run-out, with goalkeeper Tahj Bell and defensive lynchpin Reiko Trott among those substituted.Until then, other than a first-half header from Shane Higgins that drifted wide, Rough Riders had rarely troubled the Under-20's defence which was well marshalled by skipper Roger Lee and Trott.Substitute keeper Corey Richardson, who had only replaced Bell a minute early, probably should have done better with the Rough Riders' opener which saw sub striker Keith Detelj curl in a right-footed shot.Detelj, a constant second half menace, doubled the lead on 78 minutes with a sublime close range back heel from a right wing cross which caught the Bermuda defence napping.Bermuda responded well but never really looked like scoring, and despite showing glimpses of attacking intent through Lejuan Simmons, Quadir Maynard and sub Casey Castle were largely devoid of the extra quality required to breach the Rough Riders defensive barricade.Darrell will be hoping that Ipswich Town's Reggie Lambe can provide the answer to that particular conundrum in Suriname.North Village's teenager striker Jason Lee, arguably the standout player during this season's Premier Division, would also offer another dimension to their attacking armoury if available for selection, because although Dante Leverock and Dante Albouy are useful target men, neither possess the killer instinct, pace or mobility to get in behind defences.Leverock, who looked isolated ploughing a lone furrow, was gifted a glorious opportunity to open the scoring within the first five minutes, intercepting a back pass, but the big striker got himself all in a tangle as he attempted to round ‘keeper Alex Naples who was able to smother the danger.In the second half midfield schemer Troy Tucker, who improved after a sluggish start, had a difficult chance to equalise but was always stretching for Maynard's left wing cross with the ball sailing over the crossbar.The win completed a clean sweep on the Island for Rough Riders having already defeated the Under-20s 2-1 at Wellington Oval before beating Dandy Town 4-0 at BAA Field.But despite Bermuda's pair of loses, assistant coach Devarr Boyles believed the matches had provided the preparation needed ahead of this month's qualifiers.“I saw minor improvements over the two games,” said Boyles, “Some of the players did the jobs we asked of them when others didn't. We got what we wanted, two warm-up matches and the effort from the players was very good.“We're looking like a team that can remain in games for longer periods but we need to improve our penetration, sometimes we pass without purpose.”Head coach Gary Darrell echoed Boyles' sentiments regarding the Under-20s newfound steely edge.“We're becoming tough to beat and that's the most encouraging thing.“We made a few substitutions in the second half because we wanted to have a look at some of our other players like Terrin Smith who didn't travel to Guadeloupe in the last round (of the qualifiers). The games provided some good preparation for us as it's far better than just training.”Bermuda Under-20s travel to Surinam on January 14.Bermuda Under-20sT. Bell (C. Richardson, 68), D. Andrade, J. Bather (R. DeShield, 45) R. Lee, R. Trott (T. Smith, 68), L. Simmons (C. Castle, 72) T. Tucker, J. Swan, S. Burchall (A. Hunter, 75) D. Leverock (D. Albouy, 71)Substitutes not used: A. NelsonLong Island Rough RidersA. Naples (Z. Kupfer, 45), B. Arkian, S. Arikian (E. Detelj, 65), S. Barea, K. Garcia, A. Grendi, S. Higgins, J. Nealis, G. Roderick, M. Secko, M. UySubstitutes not used: T. Booth, D. SarleGoals: Detelj, 70, 82Referee: S. AllenYellow cards: J. Bather, Q. MaynardMen of the match: R. Trott (Under-20s) E. Detelj (Rough Riders)