THE sweet joy of reaching the country's first World Cup almost had a sad end for some 300 Trinidad and Tobago fans who remained under siege at the Bahrain National Stadium after seeing T&T's Warriors smash their hosts hopes of reaching the big stage.
But, one could not help but feel sorry for Bahrain who felt the bitter pill that Trinidad & Tobago swallowed sixteen years ago when failing by a similar 1-0 margin to the United states. They did not take it well.
Having seen their dreams dissipate, first a Bahrain player attacked Colombian referee Carlos Lopez, who had disallowed what would have been a late Bahrain equaliser for a foul on T&T goalkeeper Kelvin Jack. It was too much to bear and the Bahrain players' frustration spilled over to the fans, who tore apart their stadium, hurling debris and plastic seating towards the field. For their own safety, the T&T posse was gathered to one end of the field where they waited a half hour before a troop of security forces escorted them to their buses and to safety. Moments later, the T&T gathering were to leave Bahrain on a 1 p.m. flight headed for home. They are due in around noon today.
While the Bahrainis shed tears, all that came from the T&T posse through the match were sounds of joy, elation and finally, relief.
It was a professional display by the Warriors who took charge early, keeping the hosts in their half for long periods of the game. Finally, the game was won by a powerful, precise, perfect 49th minute header from lanky Wrexham striker Dennis Lawrence.
Many years from now, when Lawrence is old and grey, they will still be telling tales about the aplomb with which he directed Dwight Yorke's left-side corner past outstanding Bahrain keeper Ali Hassan, the last defender on the line and into the right corner of the net.
Leo Beenhakker Trinidad and Tobago's seasoned Dutch coach, was high in praise for his players who after a disappointing 1-1 home draw on Saturday, lifted their game to win the away leg. Although noting that they had temporarily forgotten how to play football after going ahead, Beenhakker put it down to inexperience.
Having revived a faltering Trinidad and Tobago campaign by claiming four wins and a draw in their last matches, Beenhakker was a proud man last night.
"You work 40 years in football and of course you have several highlights and this is of course one of them. Especially when you see where we started. You know, as I know, when we started at the beginning of May after three matches, the team had only one point and we were normally without any chance.
"In the qualifying matches, it was going better and better and of course this is the result. So, I am very satisfied that I could help to bring Trinidad and Tobago for the first time in the history of such a big tournament and I specially I am very happy and very proud of the players for doing what they did the last few months in just a little time."
In contrast, Bahrain's Croatian coach Luka Peruzovic was broken. Talking of possibly protesting the disallowed goal, the head-coach looked almost of the verge of tears as he answered questions from the media.
Like his Bahrain players, he had had a lot to lose.