Carlos Costly scored twice to give Honduras a shock 2-1 win over Mexico in the Gold Cup yesterday to keep their campaign alive.

Costly, who plays for Polish league runners-up GKS Belchatow, powered home a header in the first minute of added time from a left-wing cross by Emilio Izaguirre in the Group C match at a packed Giants Stadium.

Earlier in the second half he brought the scores level when he latched on to a long through ball and waltzed around goalkeeper Oswaldo Sanchez to score from a tight angle.

A bitter blow

The defeat was a bitter blow for Mexico, four-time Gold Cup winners, who played most of the second half with 10 men.

The Mexicans, under new coach Hugo Sanchez, had never lost to Honduras in three previous Gold Cups but struggled to beat unfancied Cuba 2-1 in their first match on Friday. Honduras lost their opening match 3-2 to Panama.

Yesterday's game was a story of two penalties - one missed by Honduras' Amado Guevara, and one scored by Mexico - followed by a momentary loss of control by Mexican striker Cuauhtemoc Blanco, who had scored Mexico's penalty at the 29th minute, was sent off for elbowing defender Jorge Samuel Caballeros at a corner.

CARIBBEAN TEAMS

Meanwhile, two of the three Caribbean teams enhanced their reputations with solid performances in group matches on Saturday.

Guadeloupe stunned Canada when they won a very competitive Group A match 2-1 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida.

Then Caribbean champions Haiti gave their fan base inside the Bowl reason to cheer, when they drew 1-1 with Confederation powerhouse Costa Rica.

Caribbean No. 1 Trinidad & Tobago, however, failed to capitalise on the sweeping changes to their opponents' starting line-up, and the United States capsized their chances with a 2-0 win at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.

This is Guadeloupe's first appearance at the Gold Cup and in any international competition, since they are technically part of France they have played consistently well in the Caribbean Cup competitions over the years.