DIRECTV North East Stars held the first two of six open trials in Arima and Valencia at the weekend. The trials were open to any men under 23. Saturdays trials at Larry Gomes Stadium saw 19 hopefuls go through their paces with 7 selected to go through to the next stage. On sunday, 14 players arrived at the recreation ground in Valencia and 5 were put through to the next stage.
"Overall, we were all generally impressed by the 33 players we saw over the weekend" said team manager, ex T&T international, Kevin Jeffrey. "It takes a lot of self confidence to put yourself forward, and of course, it can be disapointing if you do not get through. Overall, 6 of the 12 players selected were under 20, and this indicates the quality of the next generation of professional footballers in Trinidad.
Aside from Jeffrey, in attendance to study the trialists were CEO, Brent Sancho, Head Coach, Shurland David, Assistant Coach, Arnold Dwarika, Physio Lester Young as well as North East players Glenton Wolfe, Akiel Guevera, National Team striker Anthony Wolfe and former U23 players Kaydion Gabriel and Jeromie Williams.
Sancho said "Its important to get a variety of opinions at this stage, so we like to include players and staff in this first round selection. With so many potential players on display, its easy to miss a player with talent. Its not all about the guy who scores the goals, we're looking for positional sense, work rate off the ball and vision. Of course, once the players are selected it will then be down to our Head Coach, Shurland David and his team to decide who gets a contract." Sancho also stressed that trialists need not be from the North East. "Obviously, we wanted to give every potential player in our community a chance to display their talents. Thats why all 6 trials will be held in the North East. But we aim to make the club a nationwide brand, so we welcome trialists from all corners of Trinidad & Tobago. Indeed, of those selected this weekend, 2 were from Tobago, and one each from Morvant and St James. But it is pleasing to see that no less than 4 players were from Valencia, one from Manzanilla and one from Arima."
Jeffrey added "We're looking forward to this weekends trials in Mayaro on Saturday and Biche on Sunday." However, Jeffrey stressed that players were being judged not just on the field, but also off the field. "North East Stars have high professional standards and those players arriving late or without the correct equipment will be judged accordingly. It is important for all trialists to recognise that they should arrive with a professional attitude."
Registration takes place at 8 am each day and players should arrive with dark shorts, socks, shinguards and $20 registration fee. There will be further open trials on Saturday 4th June at Toco and Sunday 5th June at Ojoe Rd, Sangre Grande.