National Senior Team coach Leo Beenhakker met with other members of his management team at the T&T/Germany 2006 Administration Centre, Kantac Plaza, Arouca to discuss details about upcoming home-based training camps and preparations for the February 28 friendly against Iceland in London.
Beenhakker, arrived in the country on Monday evening along with assistant coach Wim Rijsbergen and they both met with manager Bruce Aanensen and George Joseph as well as local assistant coach Anton Corneal. Beenhakker revealed his intentions for dates for the training camps in Austria and England and will also meet with chosen home-based players tomorrow at the Hasely Crawford Stadium to discuss his intentions while the management team will meet with the home-based and US-based players who were part of the qualifying campaign to reveal further to them about their bonus payments.
Beenhakker saw for the first time, the newly renovated Kantac Plaza offices which he will be based at along with Aanensen, Joseph and other TT/Germany 2006 team staff including Chief Operational Officer Horace Reid. Prior to their return here, The Dutch duo was in the United Kingdom and Holland looking at some of this country’s overseas-based players in action as well as others eligible players. They also, along with international relations consultant Mike Berry visited training camp sites in England and Austria.
Meantime, West Ham United goalie Shaka Hislop and other members of the Senior Team’s Players Committee were delighted to hear about Beenhakker’s return as they look ahead to reassembling as a team for the first time since the victory over Bahrain next month for the friendly versus Iceland.
Hislop said it would be a special reunion in London next month.
“It definitely will be a special one because a lot of people are saying that it’s unfortunate that we won’t be home for Carnival but as seasoned professional footballers you get accustomed to that. But this time, when we meet up again as a team it will be the first time since the match in Bahrain and I think everyone is really excited about this one,” Hislop told TTFF Media.
“It could prove to be a different kind of meeting also because not only are we going into a different kind of preparation but we are also doing it as a World Cup team and that’s a huge step and one which I think we will all rise to.”
He also shared his thoughts on the inclusion of Fulham goalie Anthony Warner, saying: “It’s just one of those things which goes to say that he’s a player who will come into the team and hopefully add value to it. It’s not something that we are going to be bitter about in any way and at the end of the day the competition will just help in bringing about the best out of the other ‘keepers like myself, Clayton (Ince) and Kelvin (Jack) and in this regard I think he (Warner) will be a decent addition to the set up.”
Aware that Beenhakker will begin working with the locally-based players and that players who were part of the campaign will receive their bonus payments, Hislop praised the bosses for ensuring things went smoothly.
“From the moment Mr Warner and the other officials came up to London to meet with us, we always knew that there would be something good coming out of it. The players like myself, Dwight and the others have always kept in touch and seeing that Warner and the others saw it important to come and meet with us meant a lot and we were happy that it was a speedy process which makes it a lot more easier for us to concentrate on the football now. As rightly said, we are footballers and we have nothing to do with politics, so at the same time it would be easy on us if the government of the country could also see it fit to work together with us like the Federation did. We are pretty sure they will have good intentions but we also want to have less things taking away from our time to be used preparing for the World Cup,” the former Newcastle United custodian said.