Join the football safari today
By PETER O’CONNOR
Sunday, April 27 2008
Trinidad & Tobago NewsdayWHAT are you going to do this evening? Well, if you are in Tobago you will probably be going to the big international concert, and I hope you enjoy that. However, if you are, like me, in Trinidad, I want to suggest a trip to the Marvin Lee Stadium at Macoya.
This afternoon, the locally-based footballers of the Soca Warriors will be playing Grenada, in one of several warm-up matches leading into our first South Africa 2010 World Cup qualifiers.
Grenada has been drafted in as a replacement for the originally scheduled Puerto Rico, who had problems getting their team to Trinidad.
However, I consider Grenada a better and even a stronger challenge to our Warriors. Traditionally, Grenada has always put out their best efforts against us, and certainly they will have a measure of local support from the Grenadians resident or living here.
The match this afternoon follows our home victory over El Salvador, and the great come-back over Jamaica at “The Office” to draw two-all.
And, more encouraging, these results were achieved by our home-based players, who, as we all need to accept, must carry our flag in many of the friendlies we will play until the close of the season in Europe.
There are those amongst us who believe that the locally-based are treated “unfairly”, because some of them may be replaced by the overseas based players for the qualifiers.
The reality is that these locally based players are being given the opportunity to demonstrate to the coach, and indeed the nation, that they deserve to be in his final squad. It is they who, in the absence of the so-called stars, must rise to the challenge and impress the coach while the others are away.
Without these matches, what opportunity would be given to them to show their worth?
Our local players must walk onto the field with the attitude that, while Jones and Scotland and John may be coming in for England and then for the qualifiers, they are not coming to take my place!
They must recognise the opportunity they are being given and indeed if they prove themselves good enough, they will be chosen.
If you are one of those who believe that the locally-based players are good enough to become the core of our World Cup squad, then you owe it to yourself and to these players to be at the Marvin Lee Stadium this afternoon, cheering your heroes on, and leading them to a convincing victory over Grenada.
Should one of the players on the field this afternoon replace Jones or Edwards, then more power to you, and to Trinidad and Tobago!
But there is another reason for you to be at the match this afternoon. Many of you who went out to support the local Warriors against El Salvador were asked to provide data and contact information to the federation.
This information is being used to establish a data base of fans who will be given access to purchase tickets to all of our upcoming World Cup qualifiers. The principle is that if you support our national teams in what some consider the “lesser matches” you will be given the right to purchase tickets ahead of the masses who only support when we are near the end of the qualifying road!
So come on out this afternoon and register yourself as a true supporter of Trinidad and Tobago, and help develop your right to access tickets when all the other fans decide to come out for the last two or three matches.And following the Grenada game, Barbados will come in to play us on May 11 at the same venue. This will be our last match before we take on England in our centennial match on Sunday June 1.
All the arrangements for this match, including ticket access and prices, will be revealed during the coming week, so look out for the releases!
For information on the English view of this historic match, you can check the website of the England Football Association:
http://www.thefa.com/ England/SeniorTeam/NewsAndFeatures/Postings/2008/04/TT_centenary.h tm;
Although our match against England will be billed as an international friendly, it will attract more attention worldwide than any of our World Cup qualifiers this year.
It is up to every one of us, from ball-attendants through football stars, and of course, our supporters and every citizen, to make this match a memorable and historic occasion.
Yes, we want to win the en-counter on the field, but we also want the world to see the best of us all, and as we all know, that is the best that the rest of the world can aspire to become!
