www.guardian.co.ttShaka to bounce back...says Ince
Clayton Ince is backing compatriot Shaka Hislop to stand tall between the sticks for the ‘Warriors’ against Costa Rica today.
The Portsmouth custodian conceded a soft goal in Saturday’s 5-1 defeat as Guatemala recorded their biggest home win in World Cup qualifiers.
Ince, who sat on the bench, remained optimistic about Hislop’s and T&T’s future.
“I feel the hurt even though I was on the bench. We have to put that aside and improve. As a goalkeeper you always tend to pick up on your errors and make sure it doesn’t occur again. Shaka is a strong guy and he’s going to bounce back,” Ince said.
“Once required I’ll be there. It’s not a situation where there are number one and number two goalkeepers, we are both first call and it’s just up to the coach to use whichever one on the day.”
Sam hungry for goals
He’s been in good form of late for Wrexham in the English League Two and now he’s eager to get his name among the scorers for this country in World Cup action.
Hector Sam was a second half replacement for Leslie Fitzpatrick against Guatemala but was unable to have any impact on the scoreline. Now he’s desperate to hit the old onion bag.
“I’m just pumped up to get something in the net for my country. My last goal was against St Vincent last year and I haven’t done much more than that for some time and now is when it really matters. Hopefully we can all get it right on the day,” Sam said.
With Wrexham struggling to avoid relegation, Sam, Carlos Edwards and Dennis Lawrence may just well be playing their football elsewhere if the opportunity arises. Edwards looks more likely to move up to a higher ranked club but Sam is also hoping for a good call.
“It’s been well documented that Wrexham have been struggling especially with the administration situation but we’ll see how it goes from here. You always aim to play at a high ranked club and hopefully something will fall in our favour,” Sam said.
Glen gunning again
Guns blazing today. That’s what speedy striker Cornell Glen has on his mind ahead of today’s crucial 2006 World Cup qualifier against Costa Rica.
Glen missed the loss to Guatemala after failing to recover in time for Saturday’s match. He was however declared fit and appeared for Dallas FC in a 2-1 win over Colorado Rapids and is back in the T&T team for today’s game.
“I got the chance to come on against the USA and I was then looking forward to playing against Guatemala before the injury. That left me really disappointed but I’ll get my chance again hopefully on Wednesday. I know we are in need of some goals and points and it feels good to come back at a time when the team is in need of something inspiring which hopefully I can help bring. The Costa Ricans are always known for playing with pace but I believe that once we can put our heads together and get our feet down, there’s no reason why we can’t pull it off,” Glen said.
Rojas ready
Real Salt Lake defender Marlon Rojas is carded to line up for his club against New York/New Jersey Metrostars on the weekend. But he’s more interested in playing today against Costa Rica.
Rojas was a starter in the 2-1 loss to United States last month but was on the bench on Saturday and is keen to get back among the starters having recovered from a hamstring injury.
“I am one hundred percent ready again. The coach is the one who decides whether I play or not and when I’m called I’ll be ready,” Rojas said.
“We are accustomed to these situations and it’s a matter of us being able to rebound against Costa Rica. Deep down I believe the guys all want to get it right in this one.”
Pierre wants better this time
He was in the starting team which lost 2-0 to Costa Rica in the return match of the 2002 World Cup qualifiers at the Hasely Crawford Stadium. Today, a fitter and more experienced Anton Pierre wants to help T&T to three points which will be more than the team had at the time of meeting the Costa Ricans back in 2002 when six games in the final round were already completed.
“This game is probably the most important of my career because it has much more significance than 2001,” Pierre said. “I think now being able to be in the squad is an achievement but it’s more than that now because we have to get into the habit of beating teams. I’m confident that we can bounce back but it’s going to be hard and we must be prepared for a rough battle.”
The likes of Nigel Pierre, Arnold Dwarika, Nigel Henry, Keyeno Thomas, Angus Eve, Leslie Fitzpatrick, Silvio Spann, Atiba Charles, Brent Sancho, Stern John, Kenwyne Jones and others are all carrying the same thoughts ahead of what is undoubtedly the most crucial game up to this point of the campaign.
Shaun Fuentes is the press officer for the CFU/TTFF—email shaunfuentes@yahoo.com