Super Eagles Edge Jamaica in Unity Cup Final After Thrilling Penalty Shootout

Posted : 01 June 2025

Jamaica proved to be a hard nut to crack, but cracked they were in the end, as the Super Eagles won an entertaining Unity Cup Tournament final match following a penalty shootout in West London.

A terrific atmosphere of singing, dancing, and feasting provided a fitting backdrop to a game that swung from end to end at Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium. Nigeria scored first, then conceded, scored again, and conceded once more before a penalty shootout was required to separate the teams.

It was exactly 21 years to the day since the Super Eagles had beaten the same Reggae Boyz in more commanding fashion—two goals to nothing, courtesy of strikes by John Utaka and Bartholomew Ogbeche at The Valley, the home ground of Charlton Athletic FC.

On that day, Utaka, in the same white top and shorts, finished with aplomb to put the Eagles ahead, similar to how he had latched onto a long pass by Nwankwo Kanu to drill the sword into Cameroon in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia months earlier, ending the campaign of the Cup holders.

In the semi-finals played on Tuesday and Wednesday, Jamaica had beaten Trinidad and Tobago 3–2 with a last-gasp penalty. Kasey Palmer, Rumarn Burrell, and Richard King were the scorers on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Cyriel Dessers and Semi Ajayi were on song for the Super Eagles.

Cyriel Dessers, whose composed finish to put the Eagles ahead against Ghana in the semi-final was still the talk of the global football community, floated the ball skillfully into the box for Moses Simon to jab past Shaquan Davis in the 9th minute.

Unruffled, the Reggae Boyz—coaxed on by their supporters, who made up two-thirds of the crowd—equalized three minutes later when Rumarn Burrell darted past Sodiq Ismaila on the right and squared for Kaheim Dixon to drive past Stanley Nwabali.

Dessers, ever vibrant, came close in the 23rd minute, only for Davis to hold the ball firmly and prevent any damage.

Nigeria began the second half the same way they did the first, with the ebullient Samuel Chukwueze ghosting past several defenders and slotting the ball past Davis into the left corner in the 53rd minute.

Again, the Boyz were unfazed. Instead, they regrouped, surged past the Nigerian rearguard from the right once more, and Jonathan Russell was on hand to finish with a flourish.

In the end, a penalty shootout was needed. Kelechi Iheanacho, Moses Simon, Tolu Arokodare, Bruno Onyemaechi, and Christantus Uche all scored their kicks, while Jamaica missed their fourth attempt.

Super Eagles Edge Jamaica in Unity Cup Final After Thrilling Penalty Shootout

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