While the `Reggae Boyz' defied probability to qualify for France at all and will be lucky to go home with even a point, Croatia boast some of Europe's most creative players and are probably capable of beating anyone on their day.

Croatia's coach Miroslav Blazevic is on record as saying his side can reach the semi-finals or the final, but has already suffered a cruel blow from the injury which forced his top striker, Lazio's Alen Boksic, out of the squad.

Nevertheless, if the side maintains its discipline, playmakers of the class of Robert Prosinecki and Zvonimir Boban ought to possess too much sophistication for a Jamaican side which makes a virtue of athleticism and directness.

Both sides went to some trouble to set up their training camps in France's rural east -- Croatia in Vittel and Jamaica in Arc-en-Barrois, about as far as it is possible to be from the reporters in themain match venues.

But the teams, who have never met, finished up close to each other. Croatia tried unsuccessfully to send spies to a Jamaica training session after Jamaica's Brazilian coach Rene Simoes attempted some of his own intelligence work.

Simoes, for his part, has put his team through a punishing warm-up programme including 0-0 draws with Brazil, Sweden and Nigeria that ought to mean they do not pay anyone too much respect. Neutral fans will hope Jamaica can grab at least a point to shake up an apparently clear-cut Group H, where favourites Argentina should, on paper, qualify easily alongside Croatia, leaving Jamaica and Japan to dispute the wooden spoon.

``If the Croatians aren't careful, on Sunday they'll be learning to dance reggae,'' Simoes said. Whether he will risk his most twinkle-toed striker, sometime bad boy Walter Boyd, is still unclear.

Boyd, a national hero with 17 international goals to his name, paid his own way to Jamaica's warm-up tour in the United States to persuade Simoesto take him back after being dropped for lapses of discipline.

But Simoes may instead prefer to field some English-based players with more experience of the big time.