T&T team of the month.
By: Inshan Mohammed.
The Soca Warriors Online (SWO) is proud to announced T&T players of the month. Here are eleven Trinidad & Tobago players who are currently having a good run for both their clubs and country.
Marvin Phillip - Marvin gave many “Man of the Match” performances for Joe Public in the CONCACAF Champions League despite his defence letting him down. His heroics landed Joe Public $80,000 and a First Citizens Cup (FCC) title. He kept a clean sheet from the spot, making two brilliant penalty saves against Rondell Elcock and former T&T defender Aklie Edwards which helped his team to the 3-0 victory over Defence Force in the FCC final. Phillip also had another clean sheet against Haiti in T&T's last Digicel Cup qualifier on Saturday November 7th. Overall, he is a more consistent performer than his international counterpart. Speaking of which, Jan-Michael Williams is not as consistent between the sticks as Phillip despite earning more caps for T&T. Special mention to Williams however who had a great game against Jamaica in Kingston last month.
Daneil Cyrus - Does the simple things and is maturing as a T&T center back in every game. He has been a main stay for T&T in central defence as of lately. Though Yohance Marshall made a good debut against Jamaica in Kingston he has not been featured in too many games for both his club and country and obliviously cannot be rated at this point in time. We can forget about Makan Hislop making a return to claim his spot on the T&T team, as Cyrus does have the edge and a big one at that over his once Joe Public teammate.
Julius James - Great player at both country and club level. He seems to be growing in every game and has a never die attitude and a great personality. He had a man of the match performance against Guyana. His passing is also superb and is capable of making a 50-yard pass accurately from the back.
Kern Cupid - Matured as a right back and has cemented his place there for both club and country, so now it’s his to lose. He seems composed on the ball as well.
Joevin Jones - Since his debut, Jones has never looked back. He made his debut against Panama in Panama City and impressed coach Latapy so much that 29-cap left back Aklie Edwards was soon on the bread line. Jones went on to play in eight consecutive games for T&T and only a suspected calf injury kept him out against Haiti. His replacement Anthony Wolfe filled in perfectly, but one can only assume he is a better attacking option and may get exposed against better opposition. Time will tell.
Carlos Edwards - Currently having a good run for his club Ipswich Town and as a reward for his efforts he was named on the Championship team of the week in early November. Hopefully Lester Peltier would step up and challenge Edwards for that spot in time for next month’s feature.
Clyde Leon - A work horse in midfield, Leon is currently the only defensive midfielder from T&T to play consistently for both club and country. Though Chris Birchall would have been my first choice, he has not featured in too many games for his Club in the past month. Leon is definitely a hard working player, but he plays at one level and one pace which does affect his game from time to time.
Scott Sealy – Sealy has now been converted to central midfield and has been impressing the San Jose Earthquakes head coach thus far in the few games he has played. Sealy was instrumental in San Jose's latest play-off win over the New York Red Bulls, who only needed a tie to advance to the Eastern Conference final. He played a full game and even got an assist. Kettering Town’s Andre Boucaud would have been my first choice in this role, but Sealy has been up to the task lately. Boucaud by the way is having a good run for his club and recently got promoted to team captain.
Hughtun Hector - A player who can play at a higher level than many local wingers. Hector has been in impressive form for T&T as well. He scored and assisted a Kerry Baptiste’s goal against St Vincent, scored a brace against Haiti and copped man of the match honors also against Haiti. Hector can cross the ball effectively and is good with free-kicks. He is also a better option than the inconsistent and out of form Hayden Tinto.
Devon Jorsling – ‘Nuff’ said about the Defence Force striker! Devon is in excellent form for both club and country and has ten goals from 12 games for T&T so far this year. After this phenomenal display, one can only expect to see more goals from Devon when T&T heads to Martinique in late November, early December for the final stage of the 2010 Digicel Caribbean Cup.
Kenwyne Jones - Maybe it's a toss-up between both Jason Scotland and Kenwyne Jones. Scotland has 5 goals in 12 games in the League Championship, while Jones also has 5 goals from 12 games, 3 in the Premier League and 2 in the English Carling. But I'll give Jones the edge as the EPL is one level higher than the League Championship. Jones was also denied a clear goal for Stoke on Saturday when it appeared that Sunderland's Lee Cattermole handled a goal-bound header from the top Stoke City marksman.
Congratulations to coach Russell Latapy and the continuous hard work from his staff, especially Lincoln Phillips who I know personally is working his socks off. Good luck next month.
On SWO radar:
Densill Theobald. The T&T midfielder, known for his superb passing ability has had a great Digicel Cup thus far. It seems Latapy is helping him regain his confidence again.
Khaleem Hyland. The young T&T midfielder has made a bright start to the season and is now a main stay for his club SV Zulte Waregem.
Kerry Baptiste. Last year’s T&T Pro League golden boot winner is starting to regain his form again, but it’s still too early to tell if he’ll have a similar impact this year.
OVERVIEW
______________________Marvin Phillip_____________________
Kern Cupid______Julius James______Daneil Cyrus_____Joevin Jones
Carlos Edwards__Clyde Leon_______Scott Sealy______Hughtun Hector
____________Kenwyne Jones_______Devon Jorsling________
