Newsday
Haitians crush Young Warriors 3-1
JOEL BAILEY 2006-04-05 02:26 (updated 2006-04-05 06:07)
HAITI inflicted a 3-1 spanking on Trinidad and Tobago yesterday to seal a spot in the 2006 Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in Colombia.
Action was in the final round-robin match of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Under-21 Group Two qualifier at the Larry Gomes Stadium, Arima.
Trinidad and Tobago made wholesale changes to the squad that drew 1-1 with Dominica on Friday, with Akile Edwards, Kendall Jagdeosingh, Jason Devenish, Josimar Belgrave and Shane Calderon replacing Marcelle Francois, Ancil Farrier, Yohance Marshall, Clevon George and Abiola Sandy respectively.
Haiti, on the other hand, fielded an unchanged team that thrashed the Dominicans 5-0 two days earlier. With Kevon Neaves and Jagdeosingh on the left, the national team tried their best in the early stages to open up the Haitian defence, to get the ball ahead to the speedy pair of Judah Hernandez and Calderon.
Against the run of play, Haiti went ahead in the 16th when a tame pass up front by Etienne Yveson was horrendously spilled by a sliding Thorne Holder, with a lurking Rood Kelly Jean tapping in the loose ball into the open net.
But the Haitians, playing with more passion, energy and purpose, silenced the estimated 2,500 crowd with another item in the 37th, as Yveson’s pass on the left found Fritzon Jean Baptiste in the middle, who simply teed up an unmarked Kelly Jean inside the penalty box to slam home past a stranded Holder.
The die was cast two minutes later when the quartet of Edwards, Jagdeosingh, Karlon Murray and captain Makan Hislop, in the back, stood like statues as Jean Baptiste collected a ball from the middle and calmly lobbed the bemused TT keeper.
Even as national coach Leo Beenhakker and his assistants Whim Rijsbergen and Anton Corneal looked on in the stands, the TT Under-21s seemed to lack cohesion, aggression and composure, especially in midfield as Devenish and Belgrave were non-factors while Hayden Tinto was hardly utilised on the right.
Devenish was substituted at halftime for striker Keston Alexander, in a three-man strike attack, but the visitors almost netted their fourth when Yveson, with his last kick of the match, sent a right-sided freekick inches over the bar.
The national players were unable to mount any constructive attacks on goal, or even string more than five passes together, and it was no surprise when Abiola Sandy replaced an ineffective Belgrave early in the second half.
The Haitians were always quicker to the ball than their opponents and they simply maintained ball possession, as they watched the hosts crumble to defeat, despite a stoppage time item from Calderon, slotting home from close range after a left-sided centre from Edwards.
Teams -
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO: Thorne Holder; Makan Hislop (capt), Karlon Murray, Akile Edwards, Kendall Jagdeosingh; Jason Devenish (Keston Alexander 46th), Josimar Belgrave (Abiola Sandy 57th), Hayden Tinto, Kevon Neaves; Shane Calderon, Judah Hernandez (Ancil Farrier 69th).
HAITI: Occenat Peterson; Alain Vubert (capt), Guerrier Panel, Alcenat Jean Sony, Ednerson Raymond; Serge Louis, James Marcelin, Dacius Gilles (Olrish Saurel 65th), Rood Kelly Jean (Aveska Judelain 79th); Etienne Yveson (Innocent Jean Junior 52nd), Fritzon Jean Baptiste.
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