T&T seek revenge against Haiti

[E-man]

Trinidad & Tobago seek revenge against Haiti in their first Digicel Shield Match
Coach Wim says his Boys are Confident of Win over Haiti
By: digicelfootball.com

Posted on May 26, 2007

SUNDAY, 27 MAY, 2007 – PORT OF SPAIN, TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: Digicel, the fastest growing mobile operator in Trinidad & Tobago, is calling on all fans to come out and support the Trinidad & Tobago National Football team, as they take on Haiti in their first match of the Digicel Shield next Monday in the Hasley Crawford Stadium.

Trinidad & Tobago head coach, Wim Rijsbergen, is confident that his boys will display their best skills that will not only excite fans attending the Digicel Shield, but win the tournament and take home the Shield.

A confident coach Wim has already said, "We have begun our preparations for the Gold Cup and the Digicel Shield is the first step towards this, so we will be ready for our match against Haiti. We will continue to train hard so that we have the best team ready."

The opening match of the Digicel Shield sees Mexico take on St Vincent and the Grenadines on Monday at 5pm. This is followed by the Soca Warriors versus Haiti in the second match which kicks off at 8pm. This is sure to be a thrilling match as Haiti is an old foe of Trinidad & Tobago, having defeated them in the finals of the Digicel Caribbean Cup earlier this year.

Meanwhile the Trinidad & Tobago team took to the field on Saturday morning at the Ato Bolden Stadium, with local children from Moruga for a coaching clinic. The star struck youngsters were able to watch the team go through their final preparations for the Shield and get some ball handling tips from members of the World Cup Qualifying under 17 team. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the children who had never been that close to their World Cup heroes and the training session was an experience of a lifetime.

The teams taking part in the competition are Trinidad & Tobago, Haiti, Mexico and St Vincent and the Grenadines.
New team joins line up in Digicel Shield
The addition of St Vincent and the Grenadines promises to make the Digicel Shield a tournament to remember
by: digicelfootball.com[/size]

Posted on May 26, 2007

Friday, 25th May, 2007 – PORT OF SPAIN, TRINIDAD & TOBAGO: The exciting St Vincent and the Grenadines have now entered the Digicel Shield having replaced the Cubans who had last minute scheduling issues.

The team is coached by former Trinidad & Tobago Technical Director Zoran Vranes who are facing old friends on the field of the National Stadium.

St Vincent and the Grenadines will be playing Latin American giants Mexico in the opening match of the tournament. Mexico has already qualified for the upcoming Gold Cup and is looking to claim as many wins as they can leading up to it.

Coach Zoran Vranes has already said that, “St Vincent and the Grenadines are looking for that big win especially against Mexico who we will face in the opening match and beating them will lend more creditability to our nation’s footballing status.”

Meanwhile, the Soca Warriors are already confirmed to play in the second opening match on Digicel Shield Day one against Haiti and are confident even going into the game just a few months after defeat by the very same Haitian squad in the Digicel Caribbean Cup Finals.

“I am aware of the record of the other teams already in the tournament and their confidence but this is only going to serve to rally my boys as they already have made up their minds that they will be taking the Shield home,” said Coach Vranes.

A large turn out is expected to be at all of the matches to see if St Vincent and the Grenadines can make this promise a reality and already hundreds of tickets have been given out throughout the country for all of the matches.

[E-man]

‘New’ Warriors face Haitians
By: Trinidad Newsday

Sunday, May 27 2007

TRINIDAD and Tobago’s new-look football team will get an opportunity tomorrow to show they can change gear in anticipation of the upcoming Gold Cup tournament in the United States.

Devoid of several stars who played in the World Cup Finals last year in Germany, the hosts come up against Caribbean champions Haiti in the four-nation Digicel Shield.

In the first match tomorow, Mexico’s Under-13 team, slated to go to the Pan American Games will come up against St Vincent and the Grenadines from 5 pm at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo.

On the other hand Haiti, the defending Caribbean Cup champions are hoping to create some momentum as they also prepare for the upcoming CONCACAF Gold Cup.

They defeated the Soca Warriors in the Digicel Cup Final earlier this year for the regional crown and return to the venue of their recent triumph.

The Haitians arrived in Port-of-Spain on Thursday night and will be using tomorrow’s encounter as part of their useful preparations for their Gold Cup group matches against Costa Rica, Canada and Guadeloupe.

Their squad is made up of some of their most experienced players including skipper Pierre Bruny, Brunel Fucien as well as the trio from MLS side Miami FC — Stephane Guillaume, Jamil Jean-Jacques and Gabart Fenelon who are also on their Gold Cup roster.

The TT team has been boosted with the arrival back home of Dutch-based striker Darryl Roberts who seems to be ready for action after recuperating from a leg injury.

Roberts did some recovery work at Thursday’s evening session at the Hasely Crawford Stadium and then continued training on Friday at the Ato Boldon Stadium, Couva with defenders Keyeno Thomas and Seon Power.

But it was bad news for Chicago Fire defender Osei Telesford who miss the Digicel Shield with a thigh strain which has forced him on the sidelines for up to three weeks.

With several of the World Cup stars missing, the only player currently on the TT squad with experience of Germany, skipper Densill Theobald is optimistic that the team can step up to the challenge.

“We know for sure and I think everyone knows that we may not have our best team but at the same time I think all these guys have something to offer and have some form of quality in their own right. We will try to get things rolling with a solid performance against Haiti on Monday,” Theobald said.

“These players are all based locally with the exception of Darryl and I think the coach would have not have had them here if he didn’t think something good of them.

“Right now we are at a time when they need all the encouragement possible because the team is representing Trinidad and Tobago at the end of the day.

“While the people may support some of the other players and might be right for wanting to see the best team out there, I think if they are to not give this current bunch the support as well they might as well stick to something else. I personally think we have a big task ahead of us but it’s going to be an experience that hopefully we can benefit from,” he added.

“Of course it’s going to be harder to an extent because I know the struggles even the World Cup team had to go through to be able to put on a good show. “We had to work our legs off and everyone was part of that effort from the administrators, coaches and players come right down. Now we may just have to double up on it if we intend to make any kind of impression,” he added.

[true warrior]

Dem Haitians real smart.  Doh forget http://www.socawarriors.net/forum/index.php?topic=15743.msg162330#msg162330   even when dey losin dey win.
Doh forget how well T&T played until dey meet de Haitians in de Digicel Caribbean Cup Finals.  Ah hear man in de stands cussin dat de Haitians pull a spell on T&T.  Well hear dis, I really doh see how these boys will make out.  How confident are they?   From 1973 till now de only constant in dis mess is.....guess who?