There are myriad lessons to be learnt from Trinidad and Tobago’s 1-2 defeat last Friday in Guyana and subsequent early elimination from the CONCACAF 2014 World Cup qualifying tournament. Guyana, coached by Trinidadian Jamaal Shabazz, won Group B and advanced to the third and semi-final round next summer to compete in Group B against Mexico, Costa Rica and El Salvador.
Trinidad’s slide
Trinidad’s early elimination wasn’t a surprise; the team had been lacking spirit and commitment to its tasks since returning from the 2006 World Cup. Unlike Jamaica, which built on its maiden World Cup appearance in 1998 and since developed a reputation as a very credible World Cup team, Trinidad and Tobago football began an irreversible slide. The team became embroiled in a money fiasco with former Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (TTFF) adviser Jack Warner, whose failed promise of financial compensation for the players led to a lawsuit by the team and Warner’s subsequent reprehensible action to blacklist the players. While Jamaica continued to ascend, Trinidad and Tobago began to descend.
Warner’s and the TTFF’s action sent a message to the players that they were marginal to the progress of football in Trinidad and Tobago. The players felt betrayed, and thus began the decline in Trinidad and Tobago football. The self-centered, power-hungry Warner didn’t understand that players are in solidarity with each other, and betraying some is betraying the fraternity. The Soca Warriors began to believe that their Federation couldn’t care less about their well- being, a sentiment that became commonplace, and eventually, players’ loyalty and commitment waned.
Midfielder Chris Birchall echoed these sentiments after the game in Guyana when he explained his worst moment in Trinidad and Tobago colors: “The manner in which we lost was unacceptable. No fight...no heart,” Birchall declared. “They won every second ball. We didn’t compete and they deserve the win.” Management must be considerate of players.
The foreign factor
Trinidad went into Guyana needing only a draw to survive until the return leg at home three days after, but I believe, from my experience as a coach, that Trinidad’s German manager, Otto Pfister, just couldn’t muster a convincing enough pre-game, motivational speech that was needed on Friday, one that should have conjured a strong feeling of patriotism to fire up the players. This was an international game and the ultimate motivation lies in a feeling of patriotism, which has to move the players. It must have been difficult to do, coming from Pfister, a virtual stranger to Trinidad, who obviously has no deep ties to or feelings for the country. Coaches have to be believable to be able to convince players into action, and this is a downside to having a foreign coach.
Preparation
In defense of Pfister, this was one of Trinidad and Tobago’s weakest teams. I saw the visiting Soca Warriors versus Barbados in September and thought the standard of play probably couldn’t match a very good high school game. Compounding the problem is the lack of time to develop cohesion on the team. Despite having the more experienced players - some of whom play in England, the USA and Europe - the team lacked cohesion, which, no matter how good the individuals, only comes from playing together. Conversely, Guyana had only two foreigners, both of whom scored, but its nucleus of local players had played together more, including a grueling tour of England earlier in the year, and they most likely were a better cohesive unit. Guyana obviously was the more motivated team and believed that it had more to play for. Football is 90 percent mental!
Ultimate lesson
The lesson here is that coaches don’t win games, although they dramatically influence the result, the players do. The 75-year-old Pfister has the world of experience from working on four different continents, while Shabazz’s experience was limited to Trinidad and Tobago, but it is obvious now that Shabazz was a more effective motivator and got much more from his charges than Pfister from his.
Antigua benefits
In other qualifying results, Antigua and Barbuda won Group F, knocking 2007 Caribbean Champion Haiti out of the tournament with a 1-0 win at home. Kerry Skepple scored the winner to send Antigua and Barbuda to the semifinal round for the first time in team history, to play in Group A against the USA, Jamaica and Guatemala. El Salvador beat host Suriname, 3-1, to win Group A and advance to the semifinal round. Antigua clearly benefitted from playing in the USL (United Soccer Leagues) last summer.
In Group C, Panama had already won the only three-team group after Bahamas opted out, and will play in Group C versus Cuba, Honduras and Canada, which won Group D when it tied host St. Kitts and Nevis last Friday. Group E winner and host Guatemala maintained its unbeaten streak with a 3-0 win over Grenada.
Two teams from each of the three, four-team semi-final groups will advance to the final round of six teams, for a round robin, home-and-away series. The top three CONCACAF nations will qualify for Brazil 2014, and the fourth-place team will play off against a team from another Confederation for a berth in the tournament.
The semifinal round to kick off in June 2012: Group A is USA, Jamaica, Guatemala and Antigua/Barbuda; Group B consists of Mexico, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Guyana; Group C is Honduras, Cuba, Canada and Panama.