Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation - TTFF

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trinidad and Tobago’s senior footballers will aim to extend their three-match winning streak when they face off with a tricky Bermudan outfit at the National Sports Centre, Hamilton in a CONCACAF 2014 World Cup qualifier from 8pm (7pm T&T Time).

A near capacity crowd of 4,000 is expected to pack the venue and DirecTV North East Stars and former Sunderland forward Stern John will lead his teammates into battle knowing fully well that anything less than three points could put them under some pressure to top the current group with Guyana breathing down their necks on maximum six points as well.

Trinidadian Jamaal Shabazz is Guyana’s technical director and he will be following the match with keen interest as he prepares the Guyanese for their encounter with Barbados in Kingston. That match will finish two hours prior to the start of the clash in Hamilton.

T&T assistant coach Anton Corneal said the current T&T squad meant serious business and will look to finish off the Bermudans who are desperate for a victory to stay alive in the campaign. The T&T squad includes Orlando City duo Devorn Jorsling and Kevin Molino, European-based trio Khaleem Hyland of Belgium giants Racing Genk, Lester Peltier and Radanfah Abu Bakr as well as Puerto Rico Islanders’ Osei Telesford, sturdy defender Seon Power and Philadelphia Union midfielder Keon Daniel among others.

“We know it’s an important game for both teams but it comes down to who wants it more and I believe this current squad, despite the fact that we are missing a few of our regular players, is hungry for success and they will give their all to get a win,” Corneal told TTFF Media.

“The surface is in excellent condition based on what we saw at our training session today (Thursday) and it means it is there for  good football to be played on. Bermuda will be thinking it’s an excellent chance to get a result at home against us but we will prove otherwise on the day.”

John meantime has scored twice before against Bermuda in World Cup qualifying action.  A 66th minute goal in the 2-0 win over the hosts in 2008 pushed T&T through to the semi-final stage after Bermuda upset T&T 2-1 in the first leg. And under Leo Beenhakker, T&T won a friendly at home 1-0 with John again the goalscorer in 2005. John’s goal then came at a time when he was struggling for goals and another crucial goal followed up a week later in a 2-0 win over Panama in a World Cup qualifier. John also netted in a previous 4-0 win over the same opponents a few days earlier with Dennis Lawrence and Kenwyne Jones also among the scorers. Former defender Marlon Rojas was also in the T&T line up that day. The former Police player is now a resident in Bermuda and stopped by to wish the team well on Thursday.

“I think we have a team that is capable of producing good football and getting results. I think once we play to plan avoid any silly mistakes as well as play hard for 90 minutes then we can win our game. Obviously with me being one of the more experienced players on the team now I will try my best to lead by example and encourage the guys to do the right things out there,” John said.

Defender Julius James, now at John’s former club Columbus Crew, is focused on the task at hand.

“It’s the most important game for us because it’s the next game in front of us and we need three points.  I’d like to help my teammates as much as I can and this is another opportunity to do this now. It’s a blessing being in this preliminary stage. We’ve all played together at some point in our careers and this camp in Bermuda before the game would have done us well,” James said.
The Bermuda FA meantime have been granted planning permission to build a US$1 million FIFA funded headquarters to be named in honour of ex-West Ham hero Clyde Best.

The Clyde Best Centre of Excellence will be a two storey building, located on the same site as BFA Field, complete with changing rooms, offices, a conference room and a storage area on the upper level. And with that news their General Secretary David Sabir said it would be ideal to celebrate it with a win over the “Soca Warriors”
“What a great result it would be for us to beat Trinidad in a World Cup qualifier. Our fans will be coming out to give us that support and we’ll be trying to make life hard for the Soca Warriors,” Sabir said.

A small group of Trinidadians living on the island including journalist Gary Moreno  also intend to make their presence felt, backed by a rhythm section, in support of T&T’s attempt to get another win on the Road to Brazil.
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