Connection stuns Saprissa to shake up Champions League group
By Lasana Liburd (Wired868.com)
Former Trinidad and Tobago National Under-23 Team captain Alvin Jones cracked home a brilliant late free kick last night as Pro League outfit, DIRECTV W Connection, stunned Costa Rican club, Deportivo Saprissa, 2-1 in a memorable CONCACAF Champions League affair at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain.
It was Connection’s first win at CONCACAF level in almost six years and altered the dynamics of Group A, although it might be too late for the “Savonetta Boys” to save their Champions League campaign.
Connection has one remaining game and, to grab the solitary qualifying berth at stake, coach Stuart Charles-Fevrier must mastermind a win by at least eight clear goals against Mexican champs, Santos Laguna, and then pray for Santos to defeat Saprissa by exactly four goals in the final group match.
Former Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar probably has a better chance than that with her petition to annul the 2015 general election results.
Yet, it was a great boost for the reputation of the Pro League and, hopefully, would encourage supporters to pay more courtesy to their home-based players.
Jones’ 81st minute rocket, which flew, bent and dipped, would have brought fans to their feet in any competition on the planet. And it capped off a fine Connection performance against a full-strength Central American team that has won the CONCACAF competition on three occasions.
In Costa Rica, football scribes refer to Saprissa as “The Purple Monster.” Jones’ bullet might not be fatal to Saprissa’s CONCACAF campaign but the visitors left badly wounded.
“We expected to win here but we didn’t obviously,” said Saprissa coach Justin Campos. “It is a shame because I think it was a good game for Saprissa but we didn’t get the score we needed.
“We just have to wait to see what happens in the next game… I am very disappointed.”
Last month, Saprissa routed Connection 4-0 in Costa Rica and the stats were eye-opening. The Central American club managed 39 shots and 211 correct passes with 60 percent ball possession while the “Savonetta Boys” had 40 percent ball possession with just seven shots and 97 correct passes.
Neither team did any radical alterations since and there were just three changes in the Connection starting line-up yesterday. There were no detailed statistics available at Port of Spain yesterday but the Pro League team was credited with 53 percent ball possession.
It is not every day that a Trinidad and Tobago team—whether at club or international level—sees more of the ball than a Costa Rican side.
“Our coach, Stuart Charles-Fevrier, is a genius,” said a beaming Connection assistant coach Earl Jean, at the post-game press conference. “I think he watched a tape of Saprissa playing about 50 times before the match… At the team talk, he told the players to relax and enjoy themselves and play with confidence.
“He said ‘you are representing Trinidad and Tobago today, so go and show people what you can do’.”
None of Connection’s current players represented the “Soca Warriors” at the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup but, if they maintain this standard, there will be a few in red, black and white strip very soon.
All five players with Trinidad and Tobago passports, who started last night, are less than 22 years old while Jones and the lively Jomal Williams are both 21.
But there was more than a hint of the quality available in the region too.
St Kitts and Nevis international goalkeeper Julani Archibald was, arguably, Connection’s best performer while his compatriot Gerard Williams was his usual efficient self as he did the less glamorous chores in central midfield and St Lucian wing back Kurt Frederick scored the opening goal.
Briel Thomas, a 20-year-old Dominican midfielder, was the real scoop, though. Tall, powerful and composed, Thomas did not look out of place against a Saprissa team that sent nearly half of its starting squad to the recently concluded Gold Cup tournament.
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