The Soca Warriors - Adding Calypso to Samba
by Rajat Subhra Banerjee (woildcup.blogspot.com)
17 May 2006
Trinidad & Tobago are the lowest ranked team (outside Africa) among the 32 Finalists in the 2006 World Cup. By qualifying for their first ever finals, this little West Indian nation have already achieved their best ever result in world football. Yet they are looking forward to creating further history in the event proper.
Qualifying for the Finals was a long, arduous business for the Soca Warriors, as the team is fondly known. They played more matches (20) than any other team to qualify for this event. They lost 7 of these 20 matches, thrice to Mexico, twice to USA and once each to Guatemala and Costa Rica. No other team has ever lost so many matches and still qualified. However, they won 11 of their remaining games, including a famous 2-1 win over Mexico in their last zonal match, thereby gaining a place in the inter-zonal play-off with Bahrain. There they only managed a 1-1 draw at home, but won 1-0 away in Bahrain to create history. Striker Stern John played a major role by scoring 12 goals (out of a total of 30), but several other players contributed.
In the Finals, T&T find themselves grouped with England, Sweden and Paraguay, and have already been designated the ‘whipping boys’ of Group B. But managed by the experienced Dutchman Leo Beenhakker (who managed the Netherlands in the 1990 finals), T&T are ready to give a fair account of themselves and to trouble their fancied opponents.
Their most famous player is of course Dwight Yorke, who has played with distinction with clubs like Aston Villa and Manchester United. Now aged 36, and playing his football in Sydney, Australia, he has taken over the role of team leader and midfield play-maker with elan, and has been the key factor in qualification.
The rest of the squad, too, has strong British connections. There are 5 players who play in Scotland, one of them aptly named Jason Scotland! Marvin Andrews of Glasgow Rangers is the tower in defence, while Goalkeeper Kelvin Jack of Dundee and midfielder Russell Latapy of Falkirk are immensely experienced in top-flight football. Latapy, at 37, is the oldest player in the side after goalkeeper Shaka Hislop of West Ham, but he remains a most skilful and creative player. Apart from Hislop, there are 8 other players from English clubs, including Stern John of Coventry City, the star striker. Forward Kenwyne Jones of Southampton is a young and exciting prospect.
Leo Beenhakker provides the managerial acumen to mould this gifted bunch of players into a team in the real sense of the word. He has brought with him, among other things, a sense of self-belief that has served the team well. It can all add up to some embarrassment to the three other teams in Group B, once the games start. Their supporters will add a great deal of colour to the proceedings, and will be bolstered by a lot of Scots, especially in the match against England. The sound of Calypso is already reverberating in a game traditionally dominated by the rhythm of Samba.
