T&T U-17s go down but not outclassed.
By: Shaun Fuentes (TTFF).National team coach Anton Corneal would have had reasons to feel that his Trinidad and Tobago Under 17 team was making some progress at the end of Sunday’s friendly international against Mexico’s National Under 17 team at Fatima Grounds, Mucurapo.
Though going down 2-0 to a clinical yet not explosive Mexican outfit, T&T showed fight and promise and should definitely fancy their chances of getting a positive result in Tuesday’s second meeting at the Ato Boldon Stadium from 6pm.
Under sunny skies, the defending Under 17 World Champions were out at Fatima Grounds before a home crowd of 750 fans and would probably have felt that the match would have been an easy one for them judging from the less than professional like feel of the facility despite it being the home of the National College champions. However they got a different welcome on the pitch.
The early periods on the dry surface saw both teams trying to feel each other out and there was less goalmouth action than the fans would have expected even if anticipating the visitors to turn up the tempo. Instead, T&T matched them stride for stride.
A defensive lapse resulted in the opening item on the half hour when defender Ryan O’Neil messed up his judgment of a ball pumped forward and Jesus Milan latched on to it before forcing goalie Jesse Fullerton to commit and then neatly lobbing him.
Midfielder Chad De Freitas didn’t necessarily cause panic with his side deliveries but he earned marks for his effort in tracking back and persisting whenever T&T went on the attack. But T&T, and at times Mexico, tried to do too much going forward, losing the ball many a time when a simpler option may have extended the play. Micah Lewis, despite his willingness to take on the defense, often gave up possession because of wanting to do too much.
On 26 minutes, De Freitas also had a ball driven low across the goal from the right.
Prior to the half time interval, De Freitas’ left side corner also caused a goalmouth scramble.
Ten minutes into the second half, following a quick thrust forward, Stephen Knox tried to play a return ball to Daniel Joseph inside the box but goalie Alfredo Medina intercepted.
Substitute Daniel Cyrus forced the Mexicans to pay extra attention to their right side in defense after coming on in the 64th minute. His curling left side corner was scrambled to safety in the 69th minute. Then eight minutes later he beat his man before sending his effort further away from the far left post. The introduction of growing midfielder Sean De Silva also introduced some stability to T&T’s passing in the middle of the park.
The Mexicans, despite falling second to T&T on ball possession for much of the second half, never panicked and kept their game in tact. And even after Medina was cautioned by referee Phillip Jordan for time wasting near the end, there was sufficient time, well four minutes into added on, for substitute Ulises Plascencia to capitalize on a mishap by defender Sheldon Bateau and he calmly slotted home for a 2-0 advantage.
T&T coach Corneal later admitted that he felt at least a draw could have been a result for the hosts.
“I thought maybe we could have gotten something from it but all in all we see a lot of promise from the performance and something where we can build on,” he said. “Of course there is room for improvement and playing teams like Mexico will show you these areas as compared to if you had to play a team of lesser quality. They are also preparing for the final round of qualifiers and they have a reputation to maintain as the defending champions so they would not be giving us any easy challenges. This can only auger well for our preparations.”
TeamsT&T Line Up:[/b] – 1.Jesse Fullerton (capt), 2.Aubrey Davis, 3.Ryan O’Neil, 4.Sheldon Bateau, 6.Leston Paul (8.Sean De Silva 60th) 9.Chad De Freitas (20.Daniel Cyrus 64th) 10.Stephen Knox (13.Isaiah Ferguson 70th) 11.Daniel Joseph, 12.Robert Primus, 15.Chike Sullivan (19.Kevin Molino 80th) 16.Micah Lewis.
Subs who did not play: – 14.Jean Luc Rochford, 5.Akeem Adams, 7.Franz Husbands,16.Akeem Dillon, 21.Glenroy Samuel.
Mexico Line Up: - 1.Alfredo Medina, 2.Christian Vazquez, 4.Daniel Fraire, 8.Alberto Pacheco, 9.Raul Lopez, 15.Francisco Mejia, 16.Jose Oartuda (Ulises Plascencia 45th), 17.Juan Ayala (Isaac Munoz 87th), 18.Carlos Armas, 19.Jesus Milan (Edgarivan Rodriguez 55th), 21.Andres Enriquez.
Mexico U-17s edge gutsy T&T.
T&T Express Reports.Two defensive lapses decided yesterday's international football friendly at Fatima College ground, Mucurapo as the Mexico under-17 team came away 2-0 victors despite a gutsy performance by the host nation.
Jesus Millan finished neatly at the half-hour mark, after running on to a long ball, while substitute Ulises Plascencia pounced on a wayward back pass for the final item with the last kick of the game.
The final result may seem comfortable but there was enough to suggest that Trinidad and Tobago provided a sterner test than Mexican technical director Jesus Ruvalcaba anticipated.
Ruvalcaba travelled with 24 players and received special dispensation from his opposite number, Anton Corneal, to make unlimited substitutions. But he only chanced three changes during the active part of the match-two more subs were introduced in the closing seconds-while the Mexicans paid more attention to time wasting than the opposing goal for the final 15 minutes.
Corneal's outfit has just one win from their last five outings but he did not have to look hard for positives yesterday.
"I thought we were very competitive," said Corneal. "Our fitness level was good and we hustled well. But the killer instinct to get off shots and score was missing."
The sight of the Mexican team, who are defending the FIFA Under-17 crown, turning offensive corners into time-wasting episodes with more than ten minutes left on the clock was an unexpected tribute to the hosts. Trinidad and Tobago enjoyed a healthy share of possession in the final 30 minutes too but often lacked the quality to turn promising approach play into scoring chances.
The fixture was high on intensity but clearly lacked invention as either team struggled with the dry, uneven surface and sweeping cross-field winds.
Millan's technique helped the wily Mexican winger to tame the bouncy ball and create space, while local flanker Micah Lewis and substitute Sean De Silva were helped by, in the first case, an uncanny knowledge of the ground's flaws and, for the latter, an ability to spot passing options at an impressive speed.
Such composure and skill was in short supply, though, and fans had to tolerate a multitude of sliced clearances and clumsy dribbling from both teams in the first half.
Still, Corneal's men were not short of ambition and Lewis won the first corner after four minutes. The set piece route always looked like T&T's best chance of conjuring a goal, particularly through Chad De Freitas' deliveries into the crowd.
Mexico used a 3-4-3 system designed to stretch their opponents but the narrow playing surface and the high work rate and concentration of the young "Soca Warriors" made space a rare commodity. That was until the 30th minute and the first error by the hosts.
Central defender Ryan O'Neil misjudged a speculative punt upfield and Millan stole behind the defence to take possession and face Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper and captain Jesse Fullerton.
The Mexican paused long enough for the burly custodian to commit himself before clinically clipping the ball home for the opening goal.
But the Warriors were not cowed and striker Daniel Joseph forced Mexican sweeper Daniel Fraire into a painful defensive block before "El Tricolor" closed the half with aimless possession in the corners of the field.
It was more of the same in the second half as T&T substitutes Daniel Cyrus, Isaiah Ferguson and De Silva brought added impetus without creating much to concern Mexican goalie Alfredo Medina besides a few fiercely-contested corner kicks.
The rash of Mexican changes never came. Instead, Ruvalcaba replaced powerful striker Raul Lopez with a defender as the visitors switched to a back four in the 79th minute.
Four minutes into stoppage time, fortune favoured the more cautious side. Sheldon Bateau passed into the path of Plascencia who rounded Fullerton for the insurance item.
Both teams should have a more suitable venue for the rematch, which kicks off from 6 p.m. tomorrow at Couva's Ato Boldon Stadium.
Jumping Joseph: Trinidad and Tobago national under-17 striker Daniel Joseph, left, takes a ball on his chest despite the best efforts of Mexican defender Christian Vazquez during a friendly battle at the Fatima College ground yesterday afternoon. The young "Soca Warriors" acquitted themselves well but still fell 2-0 to the defending junior World Cup champions.
