T&T lose Jamaican 'war'.
U-20s win Manny Ramjohn battle.
By: Lasana Liburd (Trinidad Express).
Trinidad and Tobago national under-20 team captain Radanfah Abu Bakr strained his neck to look around Jamaica's defensive wall and almost willed his stoppage time free kick into the back of the opposing net.
The ball squirmed from the grasp of Jamaica goalkeeper Dwayne Kerr and rolled goalward before the tall custodian regained his bearings and dove backwards to turn the sphere around the post for a corner kick.
On Thursday night, Kerr's recovery may have been the difference between the English-speaking Caribbean's most dominant football teams as Jamaica held on for a 2-1 goal aggregate win over the young "Soca Warriors" at the Manny Ramjohn Stadium, Marabella.
"I thought (my free kick) was in and we were back on level terms," said Abu Bakr, after the match. "I was sure we would go on to win from that point."
Trinidad and Tobago won the match 1-0 but lost the war. Jamaica , who managed a 2-0 triumph in the first leg meeting at Harbour View, now advance to next January's CONCACAF Under-20 finals in Mexico .
The fate of the home team is less certain.
Coach Brian Williams recommended that the core of the squad be kept together to form a base for next year's 2008 Olympic qualifying tournament and the 2010 World Cup campaign.
Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (T&TFF) general secretary Richard Groden might see that as a reasonable request considering his threat to replace disgruntled senior players with youth for the South Africa campaign. But the local organising body has not been in sync with its coaches in recent times.
Williams felt the desperation of Thursday's playoff battle against Jamaica might have been avoided with better preparation and, yesterday, team captain Abu Bakr agreed.
"We are a better bunch of players than our performances showed," said the business management student at London 's Kingston University . "We should have surely gone further but I don't think it is the fault of the players or the coaches. It was the time we had."
If Abu Bakr and Williams were merely seeking to excuse their inadequacies, the T&TFF left a door open by selecting coaches with barely six weeks to spare before the opening qualifying round.
The entire technical staff comprised of Williams (head coach), Frank Rodriguez (manager), Hutson Charles (assistant coach), Ross Russell (goalkeeper coach), Wayne Lawson (physio/ trainer) and Osmond O'Brien (equipment manager). None, a T&TFF source alleged, received a letter of appointment or reimbursement for time or travel over the past three months.
On Thursday, the young Warriors spent two hours in traffic en route to the Marabella ground from camp at Woodbrook's Caribbean Villas-one of several inconveniences faced in their short time together. But it did not seem to inhibit the teenaged squad at kick off.
Earlier in the campaign, Williams was obligated to use the 4-4-2 system favoured by the senior national team coaches so as to ensure the smooth transition of players through the ranks.
Desperate times require appropriate measures and Williams convinced his superiors to back the 3-4-3 formation that he prefers at his Pro League club, United Petrotrin. Thirty-two minutes into the contest, it reaped is first dividend as Matthews Bartholomew put the hosts ahead after Kerr failed to gather a Stefan St Louis effort.
Bartholomew scored twice in October when Trinidad and Tobago successfully chased a three-goal win over St Vincent and the Grenadines and the 1,200 supporters who showed up pleaded for an encore.
"The support was fantastic," said Abu Bakr. "It still was not the (big) numbers we wanted but it was a high intensity match and they really give us the extra push."
The Jamaicans fought back with appreciable build-up play, which combined pace and patience. But key Boyz midfielder Joel Senior had too many defensive duties to venture forward while star striker Joel Grant, who scored twice in the first leg, was contained although not completely shackled.
Twice, in regulation time, it seemed that the Jamaicans were forced into potentially catastrophic errors. Substitute Dwayne Smith flung an elbow at Warriors midfielder Khaleem Hyland in the 66th minute but although Guyanese referee Roy Douglas McArthur spotted the infringement, he deemed a yellow card sufficient punishment while the hosts screamed for red.
Four minutes later, Senior knocked Silas Spann over in the Jamaican box and his nervous glance at McArthur spoke volumes. The referee put the whistle to his lips but could not summon the nerve to blow.
McArthur's popularity decreased further still in stoppage time as Kerr took a liking to lying on his back and counting stars while Jamaica's medical staff attended to him and Trinidad and Tobago players hopped around in frustration.
Abu Bakr was convinced that the Jamaican goalkeeper was faking injury and begged McArthur to force a substitution without success. Worse, the official told the Warriors that they would get no extra time despite Kerr's antics.
"I asked him if we could get additional time to make up (for the time lost to Kerr's treatment)," said the six foot two defender. "But he said that there could be no additional time to additional time. I asked him if the goalkeeper just stayed on his back for the entire seven minutes (of stoppage) would he just blow off the game after."
Abu Bakr almost beat Kerr from a 22-yard free kick while there was a hopeful penalty shout as well but Jamaica held on for an aggregate win.
At the final whistle, the T&T players seemed keen to offer Kerr some therapy as coaches and officials rushed to separate the feuding youths.
Still, the home team received warm applause for their efforts while Williams cooed over a fine performance.
" Jamaica was our toughest opponent," said the coach, an ex-national standout. "I think we put on a good team effort and really showed grit and understanding of the situation."
It was not enough to sustain their Under-20 World Cup aspirations, though.
"We are a World Cup team now and (opposing) teams are going to be coming for us," said Abu Bakr. "No matter how talented we are as individuals, preparation is so important."
The T&TFF have been warned.
