Dennis Lawrence - A perfect game?

[Solo]

I was there! I saw it. There is no such thing as a defender having a perfect game but Dennis Lawrence came darn close.I could not bear to bury my praise for his composure tonight in the middle of 200 posts on the game. He deserves to be recognised as a true champion a true warrior tonight. He stood out only a few notches above his captain though as Yorke had a game of his life. Easily it is the best goal I have seen by a Trinidadian by far.

After winning the ball at the top of his 18 yd box he faked a pass to Whitley and held unto to the ball for two more strides before making a nest pass to Yorke ( I believe it was in left midfield) who held off an attacker to pass the ball back into centre field for an on rushing Lawrence who had not stopped running like a man possesed. With the grace and elegance of a gazelle he outpaced the goalkeeper to the ball, then with the finesse of a composed striker drag de goalkeeper and a defender with a right footed inside scoop and stroked the ball in with his weaker left foot. GOOOOOAAAALLLLLL de people went mad! I still cyan believe wat ah see! I just believe thet T&T needs to keep the ball some more against such inferior opposition. Well done Warriors, well done Beenie! I will leave the match reporting for the guys like Andre Samuel and them who know how to write. I will just give you my ratings of performance tonight.

Jack - 8 ( had one great fingertip save in the 84th minute)
Lawrence - 10* ( I never believed he was worth a look but now I know the guy is a warrior)
Andrews - 8 (After the injury he received treatment for he was not as big a boss as he was the 30 or so minutes before. Best pass was a long diagonal one to Edwards in the second half - that was beauty)
Avery - 7 ( Make the passes quicker Avery yuh killing de game and taking too much pressure)
Theobald - 7 (Same as Avery - just pass it quicker bruds)
Whitley - 7 (nervous start had a few early turnovers but was quickly back to his best)
Birchall - 7 (maybe my expectations were too high but sometimes he got lost in the game)
Ewards - 8 ( You will be a big star - sometimes you need to take your own chances son you had at least three to trouble the keeper with but didnt take it)
Stern - 7 ( three fluffs and one easy goal- yuh is meh boy yuh good but you capable of much better)
Jones - 6 - ( hungry but sometimes too hungry that yellow was unnecessary)
Charles - 7 - ( did well you will get much better)

[Trini _2026]

Panama is inferior

[AB.Trini]

Thanks fuh the update ; Man I  was clamouring fuh this man for our first WCQ ? He has an uncanny approach tuh the game but we need that height and them  long legs tuh tie men up.

Today the man was the "ELEMENT OF SURPRISE"

[JDB]

Yuh forget Yorkie

[JDB]

Thanks fuh the update ; Man I  was clamouring fuh this man for our first WCQ ? He has an uncanny approach tuh the game but we need that height and them  long legs tuh tie men up.

Today the man was the "ELEMENT OF SURPRISE"

I know that real men don't like them but the biggest single contribution that Porterfield made was getting Lawrence into the national team setup.

[Solo]

Sorry.

Yorke - 9 ( played like he was afraid to lose - like a man possessed - he was pushed around alot and bullied but fellas he left his heart on the pitch there tonight - I was very impressed- he was a true warrior tonight - a true captain - all i could say is - Yorke is back)

And yes Triniman I said it last night and I will say it again - Panama is a very ordinary team- watch the tape of this match and you will agree with me. We could have easily taken them for 5 goals tonight.)

[AB.Trini]

Back on page #22  was  one of meh  old post:

Well let's consider the fact that Lawrence's experience. height and international composure should settle the defence. Would we miss the ruggedness of a Marvin Andrews? yes. It is comforting to know we have the depth to call upon players who are willing to battle for TNT.

TNT bring on the "FULL FORCE

[Lower St. John]

Ah laughing at the fact that KND made a post a while back that Lawrence should be played as a striker a la Crouch and man (inlcuding me) laugh him off de board.  Well ah guess de joke on me.

[samo]

It was me not knd.... I asked if anyone thought he could be used like Crouch and yes men laff. I aint saying he should be a striker but he has scored a few important goals for Wrexham and I actually saw him dribble past two defenders in a WCQ a few yrs back, either against Panama self or Canada...
I was just wondering if he has what it take t be grommed as a striker...

[real madness]

It was me not knd.... I asked if anyone thought he could be used like Crouch and yes men laff. I aint saying he should be a striker but he has scored a few important goals for Wrexham and I actually saw him dribble past two defenders in a WCQ a few yrs back, either against Panama self or Canada...
I was just wondering if he has what it take t be grommed as a striker...

It appears he is playing good in defence.  let us not try to fix stuff that working.  He is simply a defender capable of scoring some crucial goals.

[Lower St. John]

Doh take my words to heart Samo.  I still think the idea of Lawrence as a striker is borderline absurd and worthy of a good laugh.   I with Real Madness "He is simply a defender capable of scoring some crucial goals."  Nothing more.

[samo]

I eh diggin nothin... It was just a thought, and I doubt and this stage in his career he will be groomed for anything else.. I guess I should have explained myself better, if Lawrence was groomed as a striker like crouch from the beginning, do you think he would have been effective striker... I know no one will ever know, and I have not always thought of him as a starter for T&T. but I guess he is the one who has the last laff. I have always said that he should only play in games where the teams use a lot of aerial attack and don't have very skilful forwards, I hope he continues to prove me wrong...

[boss]

Solo, yuh get a big up on the Wrexham site boy!
http://www.wrexhamafc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/News/BreakingNewsDetail/0,,10311~671774,00.html



T&T 2 Panama 0 (WCQ)

TT v Panama

DENNIS Lawrence appears to be the toast of Trinidad, after he scored an amazing second goal for the Soca Warriors to wrap up victory over the confident Panamanians in last night's latest set of World Cup qualifiers.

The defender went from one penalty box to the other, swapping passes with Dwight Yorke, before out foxing a visiting defender and his goalkeeper to fire home!

This was how one delighted Trini fan wrote about the Tallman's performance, in a match that has opened up his country's World Cup hopes:

I was there! I saw it. There is no such thing as a defender having a perfect game but Dennis Lawrence came darn close.

I could not bear to bury my praise for his composure tonight in the middle of 200 posts on the game. He deserves to be recognised as a true champion a true warrior tonight.

He stood out only a few notches above his captain though as Yorke had a game of his life. Easily it is the best goal I have seen by a Trinidadian by far.

After winning the ball at the top of his 18 yard box he faked a pass to Whitley and held unto to the ball for two more strides before making a nest pass to Yorke ( I believe it was in left midfield). Who held off an attacker to pass the ball back into centre field for an on rushing Lawrence, who had not stopped running like a man possessed.

Guatemala goalie Ricardo Foster catches the ball under pressure from Trinidad and Tobago's Dennis Lawrence.With the grace and elegance of a gazelle he outpaced the goalkeeper to the ball, then with the finesse of a composed striker drag de goalkeeper and a defender with a right footed inside scoop and stroked the ball in with his weaker left foot.

GOOOOOAAAALLLLLL de people went mad! I still cyan believe what ah see!

I just believe that T&T needs to keep the ball some more against such inferior opposition. Well done Warriors, well done Beenie!

Carlos Edwards also played his part to the full, while Hector Sam was one of the unused substitutes.


BEENHAKKER SPARKS T&T
FIFA.com

Globetrotting Dutch-born boss Leo Beenhakker had a far happier debut than his Costa Rican counterpart by leading Trinidad & Tobago to their first final-round win at home in Port of Spain against Panama.

Promising to add some tactical acumen to the Soca Warriors finals hunt, Beenhakker seems to have located the proper balance during his two month's at the helm. Coventry City strike Stern John - who failed to score in the three final round matches under former boss Bertille St. Clair - found the net in minute 34 to send the home fans into long-awaited hysterics.

Dennis Lawrence added another in the 70th minute to give the hosts their first three-point haul of the CONCACAF 'hexagonal'. Added to the one they picked up in their April home draw with Costa Rica, things are suddenly looking a little sunnier for the picturesque dual-island nation as they stalk their first-ever appearance at the FIFA World Cup finals.

Leo BeenhakkerSaturday's results see Mexico remain top of the six-team field with 10 points from their four matches while the United States are only one point off. Guatemala and Costa Rica remain in third spot with four points and are joined by Trinidad & Tobago in the third-place logjam. Panama are now propping up the field with just two points from their four matches.

The next batch of games comes in four days with Mexico taking on Trinidad and Tobago at home, Costa Rica hosting Guatemala and the U.S. travelling to Panama.

The top three finishers from the CONCACAF region qualify automatically for next year's finals in Germany, while the fourth-place team will earn a play-off date with Asia's fifth finisher.

T&T: Kelvin Jack, Avery John, Marvin Andrews, David Charles, Dennis Lawrence, Christopher Birchall, Otis Whitley, Carlos Edwards, Denzil Theobold, Dwight Yorke, Stern John (Kenwyne Jones 71).
Subs: Clayton Ince, Marlon Rojas, Leslie Fitzpatrick, Hector Sam, Brent Rahim, Anton Tairre.

Match Day 4

04.06.2005: Port of Spain, TRINIDAD & TOBAGO; Hasely Crawford Stadium
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO - PANAMA 2:0 (1:0)
Stern JOHN 34'; Dennis LAWRENCE 70'
R: Peter PRENDERGAST (JAM)

04.06.2005: Ciudad de Guatemala, GUATEMALA; Estadio Mateo Flores
GUATEMALA - MEXICO 0:2 (0:2)
Antonio NAELSON 40'; OG 45'
R: Brian HALL (USA)

04.06.2005: Salt Lake City, UtahUSA; Rice-Eccles Stadium
USA - COSTA RICA 3:0 (1:0)
Landon DONOVAN 6', 62'; Brian MCBRIDE 87'
R: Carlos BATRES (GUA)

Team    P    W    D    L    F    A    Pts
Mexico    4    3    1    0    7    3    10
USA    4    3    0    1    8    3    9
Guatemala    4    1    1    2    5    5    4
Trinidad and Tobago    4    1    1    2    4    7    4
Costa Rica    4    1    1    2    3    6    4
Panama    4    0    2    2    2    5    2

Leo Beenhakker and his troops head off to Mexico today, to prepare for Wednesday evening's clash with group favourites Mexico. This is a match in which any return would be a bonus and with four countries fighting for that elusive third qualifying place, even a point would be a great result.

Match Day 5

08.06.2005: Monterrey, Nuevo Leon MEXICO; Estadio Universitario (19:00)
MEXICO - TRINIDAD & TOBAGO
R: Kevin STOTT (USA)

08.06.2005: Ciudad de Panama, PANAMA; Estadio Rommel Fernández (20:30)
PANAMA - USA
R: Mauricio NAVARRO (CAN)

08.06.2005: San José, COSTA RICA; Estadio Ricardo Saprissa (20:00)
COSTA RICA - GUATEMALA
R: Benito Armando ARCHUNDIA (MEX)

[AB.Trini]

That nice tuh see people checking out the site.

[Solo]

I'm happy to be doing my part to help and promote the warriors! Any little I can do will be most welcome I am sure. I am very flattered by what the Wrexham site did though ( if I had known they were going to quote me I would have used my best Queen's english rather than say "drag de keeper").

But hey all is well here in T&T for tonight and we should give the warriors the praise they deserve. They should be pruod of Edwards too, he forced them to change their game by making them afraid to attack down their left because he was such a counter attacking threat. Our first three goal attempts ( and Stern's goal) all came from his side of the pitch.

[Socafan]

Yuh know...people surprised by Tallman's run, but is not de first time I see him try to play he is ah midfielder. He believes he is a ball handler in his own mind. I only hope he doh get carried away against Mexico and leave the shop open.
Still I find he plays quite competently against Mexico (especially the last time we play them at home) and I see like them shortman Mexicans have plenty respect for him. Arrellano for instance is definitely intimidated and can't figure him out yet one on one.

On to Mexico.

[real madness]

Yuh know...people surprised by Tallman's run, but is not de first time I see him try to play he is ah midfielder. He believes he is a ball handler in his own mind. I only hope he doh get carried away against Mexico and leave the shop open.
Still I find he plays quite competently against Mexico (especially the last time we play them at home) and I see like them shortman Mexicans have plenty respect for him. Arrellano for instance is definitely intimidated and can't figure him out yet one on one.

On to Mexico.

True..Lawrence normally play very good against Mexico, he keeps them midgets in check.