T&T’s Soca Warriors must win when they meet Saudi Arabia on Sunday (June 22) to have a chance of advancing from the group stage of the CONCACAF Gold Cup in the United States and Canada.
Today’s clash will take place at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, USA at 7 pm.
T&T is currently at the bottom of the four-team standings with one point with the Haitians, whom they drew with 1-1 on Thursday last, but has an inferior goal differential. This can all change, though, if the Soca Warriors, World Cup qualifiers back in 2006, can hold off the 61st-ranked team in world football. T&T is ranked 96th in the world and 11th in the Concacaf region.
National coach Dwight Yorke, who took over at the helm of the team in November last year, received a baptism of fire on his debut match in charge of the Soca Warriors, as his charges went down 3-1 to the Saudis in an international friendly at the Al Shabab Riyadh Stadium.
Yorke’s men have since made tremendous strides, which include a 2-1 and a 4-0 victory against Cuba, which earned them a place in the CONCACAF Gold Cup. However, the Warriors have gone a full circle, needing to overcome the Saudis, who got the better of Haiti 1-0 but lost to the United States 1-0 for three points and second in the standings behind the Americans.
Yesterday, Yorke in the pre-game press briefing made it clear they are still in with a chance. “ Despite the defeat against America 5-0 and the draw against Haiti 1-1, we’re still in with a chance to qualify, and we know there are two scenarios. If T&T wins and we get favourable results from America and Haiti, then we advance. Saudi Arabia may look at it from a different angle, a point that would allow them to go through, so of course, a victory for them will see them go through automatically,” Yorke explained. “ At the end of the day, we know exactly what is required, and that is to get three points in the end. We need to play a bit more on the front foot; we often get off to slow starts. We always say to the players that we are a reactive team rather than a proactive team, so we need to be better than that, certainly at the beginning of the games.”
“We end relatively well, so we need to turn that around; we need to start well. I think if we have a little more self-belief, a little more self-confidence, and play football the way I know this team can play, and the ability that we have, we can get a result.”
Goalkeeper Marvin Phillip told the media that his players must come out to play for each other for 90-plus minutes if we are to beat the Saudis.
The Soca Warriors have been hard-hit by a three-week-plus period on the road, having recently contested the Unity Cup in West London and have travelled straight to the Gold Cup.
Yorke, a former national striker who made the World Cup as a player and now wants to qualify the nation as a coach, said game management would be important for the Soca Warriors tonight. “ Game management is something I try to instil in the players. For 90-plus minutes, you’ve got to see the moments out there. If your back is against the wall you’ve got to be resilient and dig deep. You’re gonna have your moments as well, so it’s how you execute when you’re in control of the game, but certainly for 90 minutes you’ve got to manage the game.”
T&T TEAM
1 Marvin Phillip (GK), 4 Sheldon Bateau, 5 Justin Garcia, 6 Andre Raymond, 8 Daniel Phillips, 9 Nathaniel James, 11 Levi Garcia, 13 Tyrese Spicer, 15 Dante Seaoly, 17 Rio Cardines, 18 Andre Rampersad, 21 Jabari St Hillaire (GK), 22 Denzil Smith, 2 Darnell Hospedales, 7 Steffen Yeates, 10 Kevin Molino, 12 Isaiah Leacock, 16 Alvin Jones, 19 Ajani Fortune, 20 Real Gill, 23 Noah Powder, 25 Kaihim Thomas, 26 Isaiah Lee
STANDINGS
Team*PTS*MP*W*L*D*GF*GA*GD
1.*USA*6*2*2*0*0*6*0*6
2.*Saudi Arabia*3*2*1*1*0*1*1*0
3.*Haiti*1*2*0*1*1*1*2*-1
4.*Trinidad and Tobago*1*2*0*1*1*1*6*-5