English Division One Club, Millwall FC are currently in Tobago for a mini-tournament hosted by Pro League Club, CL Financial San Juan Jablotah which is called the Clico Cup and according the English Club Director, Jeff Burnige they are taking all matches seriously.
Speaking to ‘ttproleague.com’ at the Dwight Yorke Stadium training field on Friday, Burnige said, “Obviously with all the respect to the tournament, if we win it or don’t, it’s not the end of the world, but we want to perform well.”
We put in preparations for this tournament like we would for any important matches. We would be taking these matches very seriously and the first match on Saturday would be a very important start for us,” said the Club’s Director.
However the Millwall Director predicts its not going to be an easy ride for his young lads, “We expect tough matches from the teams in Trinidad and Tobago. We are a team from England and they would want to win. They all have senior players while we have players who are still in school and some of them have never played against senior teams and this is a great opportunity for my youngsters to step up” he added.
It was a very easy decision why we came. We’re in the middle of the London winter and it’s good for our youngsters who have earned the break in the Caribbean after having a great season. We were invited and we wanted to come. We also know that the tournament would grow over the coming years with other European Clubs coming in and we’re very pleased to be the first. We are here and we are looking to do well,” assured Burnige.
The Millwall Director also sees the relationship between Jabloteh and his Club, as a welcoming one and this tournament would only add to the relationship.
“We see our relationship with Jabloteh as a very friendly one. A month ago we had a couple of their players over at our Club and this has created great things for one of those players. Lester Peltier has been offered a contract by Portsmouth and it all started by us having him in England.”
“We love it here in Trinidad and Tobago and we would love to come back on a yearly basis and we would see how the relationship develops. So far so good,” ended a pleased looking Jeff Burnige.