CFU Club tourney makes farcical opening.

[Flex]

CFU Club tourney makes farcical opening.
… Racing Club tie South East at CoE.
By: Lasana Liburd (Express).[/size]

There are still a few pleasures to be derived from the handing over of a $20 note. A consumer, for example, might feel satisfied with the purchase a latte or a boneless chicken roti or perhaps an ice cream. That said, the dozen patrons who turned up at the Macoya Centre of Excellence for the opening 2007 Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Club Championship Group B match between Dominica’s Sagicor South East FC and Aruba’s Racing Club ASV might wish they had not been so reckless with their own spending.
South East and Racing Club might be happy enough with a 1-1 draw on the tidy Marvin Lee Stadium turf but it would be nigh impossible for neutral observers to share their satisfaction.
Bmobile Joe Public, the 2006 Pro League champions, play South East from 7 pm tomorrow and then tackle Racing Club at the same time on Thursday. All the Group  B matches will be staged in Macoya and Joe Public received time off their domestic duties to focus on the competition.
But, if Sunday’s fixture was an accurate guide, Public might as well get on with their TTFF FA Trophy assignments and leave the early stages of this competition to their junior squad.
The standard of football was abysmal and either team would struggle to assert itself in the local banks’ competition let alone in the Trinidad and Tobago amateur football competitions.
Yesterday’s game was played at walking pace and littered with errant passes and wayward crosses. In the only notable news from the match, Monroe Phillip put South East ahead after two minutes but Maurice Escalona equalised from close range, four minutes into the second half.
Surely, the participation of such inept teams in the final stages of a competition undermines the entire product and there might be fresh support for defending Caribbean champions and Trinidad and Tobago Pro League outfit, Vibe CT 105 W Connection, who decided to put their energies elsewhere this year.
Connection at least had the grace to reveal their disinterest early. Late withdrawals from the St Kitts and Nevis’ Newtown United FC and US Virgin Island’s Positive Vibes forced a fixture change on the eve of the tournament, which meant that Public did not play Helenites SC yesterday evening as advertised in the daily newspapers.
Instead, Helenites will play in Group E.
The CFU, founded by local football bigwig and FIFA vice-president Jack Warner in 1979, would do well to explain why as many 19 teams were invited—the initial target appeared to be 20 clubs split into five groups—at the cost of such poor competition. And why Trinidad and Tobago, who boasts the only professional competition in the Caribbean and are regular victors of the regional prize, command the same number of entries (two) as Aruba, Suriname, Antigua and Barbuda, the Netherland Antilles and, prior to the late pull out, the US Virgin Islands.
An unusual—to be generous to the organising body—fixture list also means that all five groups, split into the same number of venues, share the same rest days rather than  alternating action so as to offer the viewing population a chance to witness as many Caribbean clubs as they might wish. Even the local partisan supporters will be denied the opportunity to see Joe Public and CL Financial San Juan Jabloteh in the group stages as both clubs play at the same times in different venues.
Warner is presumably occupied with his ambition to offer alternative leadership to the public at today’s general election but the 2007 CFU competition presents many questions about the woeful state of the game outside Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica. The absence of teams from Guyana, Barbados, St Vincent and Haiti is also worthy of enquiry. In no way was the viewing public compensated by the offerings of either Racing Club or South East FC.

[freakazoid]

love the intro

[Sam]

I guess Jack Warner fix it up so their would be no strong teams entering the competition leaving Joe Public a good chance to proceed to the next round. Jack like de blasted devil, he doh sleep de man always in some bobol and some racket. More teams from Cuba, Haiti, Guadeloupe and Martinique should have been invited, Jack !!! you cannot buy success. Cant wait for this asshole to fall nah....

The CFU, founded by local football bigwig and FIFA vice-president Jack Warner in 1979, would do well to explain why as many 19 teams were invited—the initial target appeared to be 20 clubs split into five groups—at the cost of such poor competition. And why Trinidad and Tobago, who boasts the only professional competition in the Caribbean and are regular victors of the regional prize, command the same number of entries (two) as Aruba, Suriname, Antigua and Barbuda, the Netherland Antilles and, prior to the late pull out, the US Virgin Islands.
An unusual—to be generous to the organising body—fixture list also means that all five groups, split into the same number of venues, share the same rest days rather than alternating action so as to offer the viewing population a chance to witness as many Caribbean clubs as they might wish. Even the local partisan supporters will be denied the opportunity to see Joe Public and CL Financial San Juan Jabloteh in the group stages as both clubs play at the same times in different venues.

I also did not know T&T were the only country in the Caribbean to have a Pro Leauge. Or did I mis-read something ?

Sorry to see W Connection pull out, but I doubt it was because of a poor competition, maybe it was something else because this Cup gets better, our teams get a change to play outside opponents and some tops teams too.

I backing Jabloteh all de way, this time they will be any MLS team....

Group A
04.11.2007: Port of Spain; Hasely Crawford Stadium
SV DEPORTIVO NACIONAL (ARU) – SV CENTRO SOCIAL DEPORTIVO BARBER (ANT) 1:1 (0:1)
OG 75’ – Cassiani EDGARD 16’ pen

Group B
04.11.2007: Macoya; Marvin Lee Stadium
SV RCA (ARU) – SAGICOR SOUTH EAST UNITED (DMA) 1:1 (0:1)
Maurice ESCOLANA 50’ – Munroe PHILLIP 2’

Group C
04.11.2007: Marabella; Manny Ramjohn Stadium
HARBOUR VIEW FC (JAM) – PUERTO RICO ISLANDERS (PUR) 2:2 (1:2)
Kevin BRYAN 20’; Fabian TAYLOR 90’ – Noel DELGADO 7’, 14’

Group D
04.11.2007: Malabar; Larry Gomes Stadium
PORTMORE UNITED FC (JAM) – HELENITES SC (VIR) 2:0 (1:0)
Anthony MODESTE 2’; Rudolph AUSTIN 46’

Group E
04.11.2007: Point-a-Pierre; Guaracara Park
PINAR DEL RIO (CUB) – JONG COLOMBIA (ANT) 5:1 (4:1)
Yisel GUTIERREZ 4’, 11’; Reinier NUNEZ 24’; Jiswel IZAQUIRRE 30’; Manuel MARTINEZ 79’ – Djarston TORBED 22’

BALTIMORE DE ST. MARC (HAI) – BASSA SC (ATG) 2:1 (0:0)
Luxene ELESTIN 51’, 59’ – Ranja CHRISTIAN 87’

[Deeks]

That was a good report from Lisana. I don't know what to make of the CFU club championship. On one hand it is good to see the clubs from all the small islands come and play. This is  the only time we see inter-island rivalry at club level. But the the down side show the wide gap between teams from the Less Dev. Countries and the so called MDC's.Then Haiti and B'dos not sending teams is inexcusable.
I wanted Connection to play. They and Jab. are the only teams presently in the Caribbean that can advaces to the final round.  I guess john W. feels if Connections wins the CFu they  may pull a Mex. team in the next round.

[black chinee]

Lasana Real F^Ck up yuh know.....lol..... but the thing is he have a point!!!!