Coach Rijsbergen to sue TTFF.
By: Joel Bailey (Newsday).[/size]
Ex-Soca Warriors coach Wim Rijsbergen is planning to sue the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (TTFF) for breach of contract.
The Dutch-born Rijsbergen, who will turn 56 on Friday, will soon be taking up a job with Dutch Eredivisie (First Division) club Willem II Tilburg but first he is seeking to resolve matters with the TTFF, regarding outstanding salary, before taking up his new position.
Rijsbergen was handed a six-month suspension without pay by the TTFF on December 4 after a confrontation with a federation official.
On January 3, the TTFF unveiled 58-year-old Colombian Francisco Maturana as coach of the “Soca Warriors” effective February 1, while Rijsbergen serves out his ban which concludes on June 4.
The Willem II Tilburg’s website reported on Monday that Rijsbergen, who replaced his countryman Leo Beenhakker as “Soca Warriors” coach following the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, is hopeful of joining the team’s technical staff but needs to attend to his salary issues with the TTFF first.
The story quoted Rijsbergen as stating that his task with the national team became unworkable, mainly due to the strike action between the TTFF and the majority of the World Cup players last year which resulted in a number of friendly internationals being scrapped.
Also on Monday, a local radio station (I 95.5FM) revealed in a news broadcast that Rijsbergen’s attorneys in his native Netherlands intends to file a lawsuit against the TTFF for breach of contract, stating that Maturana’s appointment should be null and void until a settlement has been reached between the federation and Rijsbergen.
The six-month suspension was enforced since, according to FIFA rules, it is the length of time stipulated to allow inquires and decisions to be made on the particular issue.
But it all depends on Rijsbergen, whether or not he has good grounds to state his case in a court of law, or face the risk of incurring a hefty legal bill (to be paid to the TTFF if a ruling is made in their favour).
During the January 3 media conference, where Maturana was unveiled as the new TT tactician, TTFF special advisor and FIFA vice-president Jack Austin Warner noted that “Wim needed to evaluate whether or not he could work with the TTFF.” That statement has left many to enquire about whether or not there is more behind this issue than is being revealed by the TTFF, who only made Rijsbergen’s suspension public on December 21.
Sources enquired whether or not Rijsbergen was paying the price for seeking the interests of the so-called “blacklisted” players, insisting that the former 1974 and 1978 World Cup defender raised the ire of the TTFF executive by his calls for the issue to be settled in order to have a full-strength team at all times.
But Rijsbergen’s position as coach made it impractical for him to have a definite say in such matters, and he was even rebuked by the TTFF for comments made about that scenario.
The ex-New York Cosmos standout was given a four-year contract to lead the national team to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, having served as assistant to Beenhakker during the successful 2006 World Cup Germany campaign.
Rijsbergen’s fellow Dutchman, assistant coach Jan Van Deinsen, resigned last month due to a lingering back problem while another team assistant, Anton Corneal, who guided the national Under-17 team to the 2007 FIFA World Cup in South Korea, was named as interim coach until Maturana came on board.
Warner draws battle lines against Rijsbergen.
By: Kern De Freitas (Express).
Not a cent.
"Take him on! Take him on fully. Whatever the cost. Take him on."
This is special advisor Jack Warner's recommendation to the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (T&TFF) in reaction to impending legal action against the local body by suspended national football coach Wim Rijsbergen.
Warner was in battle mode yesterday, as he criticised Dutchman Rijsbergen for his retaliation after being suspended from duty with the national senior team last month.
"The TTFF does not owe him a nickel, does not owe him a single nickel," Warner told TV6 yesterday. "And if he pushes us too much, he will owe us for lack of service," the FIFA vice-president warned.
Rijsbergen, when contacted by the Express yesterday, refused to comment on the issue.
"I have nothing to say on the matter," the former Dutch defender stated bluntly.
The 55-year-old Rijsbergen was reportedly suspended for six months after a scrap with T&TFF technical director, former national goalkeeper Lincoln "Tiger" Phillips late last year. But Warner is promising a battle if Rijsbergen does take the matter to court.
"He has popped up from out of nowhere to threaten. Rijsbergen has never spoken to us since December 4 when he left the country. I advise the TTFF to take him on, and take him on at the highest possible level. Mr Rijsbergen would not come here and abuse our officers and try as much to antagonise our officers and get away with it scotch free," the Chaguanas West MP declared.
Warner added: "He has one-or-two people here [in T&T], advising him, I have no problem with that. Let him take us to court."
Warner said the T&TFF had no intention of backing down from their position, describing them as being "on firm ground, as it has been over the years".
He also referred to another incident in 2005, when Rijsbergen, then assistant national coach, was involved in a disagreement that almost turned physical, with former team scout and national captain David Nakhid, when T&T had traveled to Panama for a World Cup qualifier.
"We should have listened to Nakhid [then]," Warner reflected, "but then again, we were not as smart then as we have been since."
