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1

General Discussion / Police Run over and kill woman,then dumps her body in a garbage heap like thrash

« on: May 14, 2009, 06:00:41 AM »

  >:(All yuh hear about that story?? I now hear about it on news this morning(thurs 14may 09). Apparently, an off duty police officer ran over a lady on the bus route, around by Bangladesh, and he dragged her body a bit with his car, then got out and dumped her body in a garbage heap like she's thrash.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's drawn and quartered deserving behaviour there. This blasted country, sadly keeps proving my horrible assertion right- that many factors [i.e. desperately poor and concentration camp like school system(particularly primary school- the formative years, our tertiary education system is good though), social services(lack thereof),it being very hard to barely eat and survive for most people, etc etc],  have converged here to form a toxic climate that efficiently creates an abnormally high per capita rate of monsters and people with varying levels of mental illness.

I've resisted the urge to cuss, as I'm trying not to cause it's wrong, but hearing this isn't helping me to say the least...

2

Football / The solution for T&T football, and T&T as a whole!

« on: April 23, 2009, 05:11:43 PM »

I started this as a post, but it got so long I decided to make a thread with it.

Just blasted disgusting the incompetence of our Football setup ,and absolutely shocking is the incompetence of some(prob most) of our local coaches, that is ruining most of our young players with international-class talent by teaching them rubbish, they don't learn the essentials of the game(dribbling means nothing if you can't get a pass or cross off properly after)

The best investment the government can make in local football(which IS the biggest sport in T&T, and therefore can make a big positive impact on this nation), is to get our local coaches official training- they could probably sponsor the best local coaches in getting their official uefa licenses, and also take some of our tax dollars to hire a few top quality youth coaches from europe or a top club in south america, to coach every level of our youth teams. Also, they should get those same coaches to set up some local exam that coaches of ALL intercol teams would have to have passed. The local clubs need to also set up REAL acadamy systems, of course with good coaches with proper  training.


Dribbling is at most 20% of the game, but we spend 80% of the time learning that, and 20% of the time learning everything else that accounts for 80% of the game. Doesn't something look a little wrong there?

edit: BTW that 80% part of the game is:
. passing(passing accurately intelligently, and being able to TRULY use our natural dribbling skills to create space and get off a good pass)

. Doing things quickly- that doesn't mean running fast, its deciding the best thing to do with the ball and pulling it off instantly, without having to charge up to do it, be it a pass, a flick or a cross, as soon as you get the ball. All top players have this, and most players in top leagues are at least ok at it. A good example of one of the best at this is Paul Scholes. Watch his game, as soon as a lane to pass or cross opens, the ball is already on its way.(and accurately too)

. Ball control over the entire body, being able to bring down a rocket cross exactly where you want it.( not all will be able to do this, but with proper practice, everyone will be able to bring it down at least close to where they want it, as you see in all top leagues)

.Off the ball movement and constant positioning and create chances(absolutely critical for a team to play solidly(to not look like conceding any goals in a match, and most times not conceding any or only a few. basically, you will NEVER EVER get beaten 7-0 if you do this properly, together with everything else I mentioned) Watch Manchester United and Barca play for off the ball movement. EVERYTIME a player has the ball, other must run and make clear passing lanes for him, there must always be at least 2 options, ALWAYS. I like ManU's off the ball movement in midfield, and Barca's own around the box. Of course positioning is one of the top attributes of a good defender.

. Crossing: Basically, being able to hit the ball in the air and have it land exactly where you want accurately. Of course also includes being able to impart good backspin when you want, to hit the type of crosses that land delicately, not just smashing your foot into the ball in the approximate place you want it to go and hope it comes off. Again, only a select few players will master it to the point of crosshair like accuracy, but as in real professional European club academies, all the players will have a good competency of it and be comfortable when they have to do a basic cross, so when their cross goes way off its the norm and not a lucky anomaly worthy to sit back and be admired.

. Heading the ball accurately.(one place where our players seem to be getting good training with)

. Defending as a team, everytime an opponent has the ball there must be pressure on him from a player, whilst the team still keeps it's proper defensive shape.


. Notice I didn't say ball possession, because that will come naturally when all these parts are added up. They eqaul ball possession, a solid team thats hard to break down and score on, and a team that will create chances. I know I prob missed out a few points, but I don't have any more time. Of course I left out dribbling, cause we are already good at that and spend too much time on that! I remember Bourbon made a post describing how our incompetent game and players(despite the obvious talent) is a result of how what most of our mostly learn the game from- undisciplined small-goal. Almost everything I mentioned above isn't required in small goal. If you can dribble you're labeled a star and your head gets swollen.(further hampering your development) In Brazil they play small goal, but the best players, that we see as stars in Europe, attend local club academies that can be compared to the best in Europe.

Of course the team manager and match tactics are of tremendous importance, but even with lesser managers with questionable tactics, teams with solid, well rounded and  developed players will not consistently perform weakly against top opponents, as so many times with different youth levels and senior level teams of T&T when we come up against so-called "top opponents".

A good manager can aide in hiding the faults of individual players by strenuous drilling of the team unit, but there will still be many times when those fundamental flaws in players get exposed, so a good few times play reasonably solidly, but occasionally be swept away, and almost never win against top opposition- even with the best manager. What we truly need are both, players developed from young to be solid, well rounded and  developed players,(the way to do this I described above), top managers, and coaches who are properly trained (preferably with badges) and tactically sound. Of course the latter is tremendously required for the former.

Under the present trademark haphazard T&T way things are done, anyone that comes out a good player(i.e. who's good and solid at the 80% part of the game that's not dribbling) has done so against all the odds. Don't think I'm bashing our players and being unappreciative about our coaches, but out of the certainly hundreds of very talented youngsters over the years, how many have really made it and held down a place in top leagues in Europe? I can probably count that on one hand. Is that because there's a conspiracy against Trinidad and constantly Trinidadian Ronaldo's are ignored? Is it because our players simply cannot develop into complete players? No it isn't. Most of our players are experts at the 20%-dribbling, but when they go to trails at top clubs, they don't get though, because they flunk at the 80% that I described before. Of course in every slapdash system there'll be pockets of excellence- i.e. players that are exceptional, and coaches that are very good and do great and very admirable work with the youths, but they are few and far between, and for anyone who has a spirit of excellence that is miles away from enough.

Look up haphazard in the dictionary, and you'll see Trinidad(btw, I'm calling Oxford now to report them of the error in theirs). I've come to realize that's the exact word that can be used to described almost every system in this country, and the football authority and youth development isn't any different. Things aren't done in a thorough, complete and all encompassing, well planed way with foresight and excellence. The few things that are done that way are the exceptions. In some of the more developed nations, that is the culture. That's why the US could have their football authority operating so efficiently, even though football(soccer) isn't at all the main sport there, because that is their culture. Trinidad has a culture of haphazard that we have to break, I am seeing some progress recently, but not anywhere close to enough.

What's your say on this, do you agree, or disagree with some of this or all? Btw I can't believe I wrote all that.

I didn't get chance to re-read this, so sorry in advance for and grammatical errors, typos,etc.

3

Football / Keon Daniel in Kaka type midfield role.

« on: April 02, 2009, 10:21:25 AM »

I was just reading a story about Brazil's game vs Peru, and after reading about Kaka, it just dawned on me that Keon Daniel is simular to him in some respects- obviously Kaka is totally developed and rifined after years in top European competition, so don't think I'm underestimating him(imho one of best in the world with Messi, Cristiano, Gerrard, and one other I can't remember now), but don't underestimate your Trini brother either.

If you look at the way Daniel plays, moves, runs and the type of skills he does, and if you know Kaka's game well you could see the similarities. They are similar tall lanky players so the way they run with the ball has some simularities, also to Daniel's credit he is one of those players who can create space while surrounded by defenders, and not with gaudy ineffective moves, but very efficient skills, very Kaka-esque.

When I think about it that way, that further re-inforces in my mind that he shouldn't be on the wing, the way he runs with the ball(similar to Kaka) isn't best suited to wing play imho. He can create space, but I think rather than having to run in a narrow confined space(tough winger-type running), because of the way he runs with the ball, that ability to create space will be better used in midfield with him passing the ball using the space he creates, or able to run with it in a less confined way, again, in a role simular to Kaka.

His ability with freekicks would signify to me that if he isn't already good at crosses and precise passing, more than any other player in the team he can learn it(also he has youth on his side, aka he isn't a old hardened horse as yet). Also I've heard others saying that he used to be a top midfield player when he was younger, before Mats put him on the wing. I for one really see the potential in this youth to be a type and quality midfield player that we've rarely seen in this country(save Latapy and a few others).

I don't think his lanky running style is best suited to the wing, and I don't know of many top wingers like that(I concede that I could be mistaken). Also, I don't think hes a "keen enough" player to play on the wing, where you have to have unaffected drive to press on and get to the byline, I don't think hes that type of player, but with his silky skills and ability to make space, and his ability with the making the ball do as he wants in the air, I can certainly see him being a very good or top midfielder, with similar play to Kaka.

As said before, I think it will more suit his personality that I've seen so far, he doesn't look to have the wingers' unquenchable drive- to get to the byline, but with his skills, if he doesn't feel driven to drive forward himself at a moment, he could skin a few players and make space and hit a good forward pass.

I didn't have enough time to look over what I typed for any contradictions etc, so please excuse, and I know many will disagree, but thats to be expected.

LOL, I expected those responses. You guys don't understand, I'm not saying Keon is comparible to present day Kaka, I'm just saying the way he plays I could see him in that type of role, and not as a winger. I'm not even saying he could reach close to Kaka's level, cause that takes an amazing determination I've not seen from our players really, but he COULD play a simular role, how close (or anywhere remotely near) he gets to the best is VERY questionable and debatable though.

Its probably completely implausible, or it could have a little bit of merit, either way it sure is polarising and at worst(or best) is a funny read for you guys, crazy fantasy football, so that's cool.

I guess this is very provacative too, because after men disgruntled from seeing the team crumble through disorganisation at USA, a man coming and saying Keon Daniel and Kaka in the same sentence, LOL. That should make the thread garner some attention and emotional outbursts, acting at  least as an outlet for frustration of T&T fans at performance of the team. (?)

Also don't take this too seriously, it was just a sort of fleeting daydream I had lol.

Take care.

4

Football / I am just disgusted with our so-called football "supporters". Are You?

« on: March 30, 2009, 12:25:55 AM »

I am just disgusted with our so-called football "supporters".

I attended our recent World Cup 2010 Qualifying match vs Honduras. Before the match started I seeing alot of people wining and jumping up to the music, so told myself the team's going to get good vocal support, but to my amazement, as soon as it started, and the time to make noise arrived, everyone was as quiet as a damned church mouse.

Throughout the match I was most likely one of if not the Loudest person in that whole stadium(and I'm not a very loud person) I was singing at the top of my lungs in between cheering every touch our players made and booing every touch of the Honduran players(was booing now and then though,many times I just cheered our players to defend hard and get back the ball, jury's out on which is better though, I think the latter.). I was trying to make up for the 15000 church mice that packed out the Hasely Crawford stadium. To top it all off people had the nerve to watch me with the, "Wha wrong with he, why he making so much noise and being different " look. What in the world is wrong with us as Trinidadians!!?

People seem think attending your team's World Cup qualifying football match is like going to the movies,newsflash-it isn't! We are supposed to be the 12th man. Our presence alone barely does anything, because if there was a twelfth player on our team who just stood there still on the field, and didn't participate in the game, he'd be almost useless. Likewise if everyone just sits there quietly, their impact is very small. The visiting team soon forgets they are surrounded by more than 20000 foreigners, who would like nothing less than for them to utterly fail, and they then get comfortable and play their usual game. The visiting team is not supposed to be unaffected and able to play at their usual pace! The mere fact that Fifa has as a punishment that the offending team must play a match at an empty stadium acknowledges the tremendous impact supporters can have on their team.

The reason teams fear going to Anfield and face Liverpool in the Champions League, is because of the atmosphere the crowd generates, thats likened onto a "Cauldron", this driving on from their supporters, and intimidation of the visiting teams(which assists in them making more mistakes and generally not flowing as they normally would), makes Liverpool consistently punch above their weight in the champions league at Anfield particularly. With the lack of vocal support our team gets most of the time in Trinidad, its almost as if every game they play is an away game. Besides the issues with management etc, I think thats a contributing factor to why we've only qualified for one world cup, even though we've had so many talented players through the years. If every game throughout for some EPL team was an away game, that team would win nothing and probably likely get relegated come the end of the season. That statement isn't a stretch, thats about how important the home advantage is.

In matches people only cheer when the team comes close to scoring, when if they cheer them on throughout the match, with the heightened confidence and drive that generates in the players(and intimidation and nervousness in opponents), they most likely would drive forward with more intensity and create more chances, thereby scoring more goals, winning more games, and getting more points- hence achieving more in general. This even helps "crappy" players and teams perform better, much more for our players, a number of which are exceptionally talented. It will also help our *ahem* slightly lacking players to perform better and with more drive and determination at our home games. Why do you think club teams generally play better at home? Its not some magical thing, its the supporters' backing- knowing that tens of thousands of people are cheering for *you* is bound to have an impact on any human being. We must not forget that half(!) of our qualifying games are at home, so if we can consistently perform at a different level at home(thus picking up more points), coupled with picking up some points away, we'll be a very productive and feared team.

The recent qualifying match between USA and El Salvador(EL Salvador completely dominated USA and scored 2 in the first half, only to let it slip to a 2-2 draw) was a good example of how much an impact the crowd can have on the game. Goal.com even ran a story attesting to the impact the crowd had on the match and the performance of their team(and lack thereof on USA's part). Another example of the crowd's impact on the games result is Iran and their home games in the Azadi stadium. Teams FEAR going to play Iran there, and watching Iran's record at that stadium, you would swear they were Brazil in disguise.  Search Azadi Stadium on Youtube.

Trinidadians, we must be a nation of leaders and not followers. We can talk when its about trivial things, but when times come around that our voice can have an impact and make a difference, said voice vanishes. Why when I'm cheering at the top of my lungs for OUR team, I get people watching me like," Why he doesn't stay quiet like everyone else around him?" and others looking at each other as if to say,"You start cheering first,"and,"I'm only one person, what difference can my  one voice make?" So what naturally followed was that everyone in the stadium said that, and the result was silence, save the Carib rhythm section. I'm sure some people around the stadium were itching to cheer more, but they couldn't pull out of themselves the will to be different from everyone around them, and in that not care. That is to lead.

What I saw at that stadium was a cross section of the nation, and their actions was an indictment on us as a people- a part explanation of why we face some of the issues we do in this country. As individuals, we don't recognize worth of ourselves as a person, the worth and impact our one voice(i.e.you are important, no matter how many time people say you're too black,white,skinny,fat) can have on other people and on the world(think Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr), and the change we can make by individually leading the way, by being the change.

Don't think I'm excusing the management and Maturana's questionable "organisation" of the team, and the players' sometimes less than stellar performances. I'm just saying we as supporters and a people have look at the man in the mirror also.

Take care out there everyone.