Bermudans here for big match
Newsday reports.
THE NATIONAL football team of Bermuda had their first training session at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya last evening and have labelled tomorrow’s 2010 World Cup qualifying match against Trinidad and Tobago as “the game of their lives”.
After arriving at Piarco on Thursday night, the team settled in at the Hilton Trinidad and winger Khano Smith hailed the match as potentially the most important of his international career. “If we can beat Trinidad the world of football would sit up and take notice of us – that has to be our motivation,” said Smith. “People all over the world will be taking an interest in this game considering Trinidad competed at the last World Cup in Germany.
“I’m viewing this match as the biggest game in Bermuda’s history. If we can progress past Trinidad, a whole new avenue opens up for us and we will get the opportunity to face other big footballing nations such as USA, Jamaica and Cuba,” he said.
The team coached by Kenny Thompson arrived in the Caribbean on the crest of wave yesterday following back-to- wins over Barbados at the National Sports Centre. And Smith believes the team’s preparations could not have gone any better. “There’s definitely been a lot momentum building up going into the Trinidad game and we couldn’t have had better preparations following our two wins over Barbados. The squad is in good spirits and we’re definitely going down there looking to get a good result. “Winning breeds optimism and we’re on a pretty good run at the moment. I think our victory over Colorado Rapids a few months ago was a real turning point for us and I can’t remember the last time we lost,” he said.
Thompson’s defensive-looking squad suggests Bermuda will adopt a cautious approach to the first leg with even a narrow defeat representing an encouraging outcome. Smith concedes mistakes will have to be at a premium if they have any chance of coming away with a positive result.
“I wouldn’t say we’re going down to the Caribbean looking to be overly cautious but we know we can’t afford to make mistakes because a team with the quality of Trinidad will punish you,” he said. “We have to concentrate on what we need to do, but obviously they will have a lot of good players who we will have to pay close attention to.
“They have Premier League players but if we eliminate our errors and stick to our game plan we should come out of the game with something.
“It’s going to be a red-hot atmosphere down there but I’ve played in a lot of pressure matches before so hopefully I’ll be able to calm a few of the other boys down. “If we can get a good result in Trinidad I know our supporters will flock to the National Sports Centre and create the same sort of atmosphere we had against El Salvador four years ago.”
Stern in strong TT line-up
Newsday reports.
TRINIDAD and Tobago will have the services of Southampton striker Stern John for tomorrow’s 2010 World Cup qualifier against Bermuda at the Marvin Lee Stadium in Macoya starting at 5.30 pm. John, who missed the Jamaica friendly with a hamstring problem, was passed fit and rejoined training at the Larry Gomes Stadium on Wednesday. He is included in the 18-man squad announced by head coach Francisco Maturana.
John will join skipper Aurtis Whitley, Carlos Edwards, Dennis Lawrence, Jason Scotland and Clayton Ince as the players from the previous 2006 World Cup campaign in the squad to kick off this country’s bid for South Africa 2010.
Also included in the team are midfielders Keon Daniel and Khaleem Hyland as well as striker Darryl Roberts and goalkeeper Jan Michael Williams.
Defence Force defender Michael Edwards is the only newcomer for tomorrow’s encounter.
Skipper Whitley said that the players have been getting down to the business of preparing for a positive start to the campaign.
“We’ve worked hard on the training pitch and I think we’ve especially tried to correct some of our weak areas coming out of the England and Jamaica games,” Whitley told TTFF Media. “We felt overall there was lift in the performance in the Jamaica game but we need to put away more chances as in World Cup competition everything counts. Bermuda will be hoping to cause an upset and I’ve been in these situations long enough to know that we cannot take any team or any match for granted,” Whitley said.
“Whether we play at the Hasely Crawford Stadium or at the Marvin Lee, the team is expected to play its best football and show the same type of approach.
“No issues at this time will take our focus off the big prize which is securing the points and moving on in the campaign to get to South Africa. We know the public is expecting a lot of us but we hope that they will offer that support to help us along the way,” Whitley added.
Bermuda were scheduled to arrive late on Thursday night, and their technical director Derek Broadley has said will go all out to rattle the hosts tomorrow. Broadley said the surface at the Marvin Lee Stadium could actually be an advantage for Bermuda. “I think synthetic surfaces suit technical players and it may make it harder for Trinidad to play their power game,” he said. He said Bermuda Hogges players had encountered that type of surface on many occasions in the USL and would not be a problem. And he insisted there would be no repeat of the problems the Hogges encountered when they faced Charlotte Eagles, with the bulk of the players brining the wrong type of boots for the surface. “We’ll make sure they’ve got the right boots,” he added.
And Barbados coach Eyre Sealy reckons Bermuda have a chance to embarrass TT in their World Cup qualifier after they (Bermuda) scored comfortable 2-1 and 3-0 wins over the Bajans last week. ”You are the underdogs but on the day anybody can beat anybody other factors come into play. It’s not going to be easy for either of us but I still have faith. We certainly wish Bermuda well and all the best,” said Sealy. He said he felt Bermuda had played “reasonably well” over the two games against his side but needed to tighten up defensively if they were to survive the critical first leg in Trinidad.
Bermuda head coach Kenny Thompson has warned his young charges to ward against being overawed by the occasion and instead use the partisan support to inspire them to raise their performances.
And he will look towards warhorse Meshach Wade, Khano Smith and John Nusum to ensure there is no repeat of the stage fright that gripped Bermuda during the early stages of their last round clash against Cayman Islands in the Caribbean.
“We will let the players know what to expect as we know there will be a very big crowd,” said Thompson. “We have enough people who can advise our players on how to handle the situation. Instead of being afraid, they must embrace the situation, even though the crowd is not cheering for them.
“You need to use the energy of the crowd to motivate you. Khano (Smith), John (Nusum) and Timmy (Figureido) were part of the last World Cup campaign and they can help ease their team-mates’ worries,” he said.
Trinidad and Tobago Squad–
Clayton Ince, Jan Michael Williams, Kern Cupid Kareem Smith, Dennis Lawrence, Ancil Farrier, Michael Edwards, Makan Hislop, Stephan David, Osei Telesford, Hayden Tinto, Carlos Edwards, Keon Daniel, Aurtis Whitley Khaleem Hyland, Stern John, Jason Scotland and Darryl Roberts
