W Connection target fourth CFU title
By Randy Bando (ttproleague.com)
Three-time Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Club Champions W Connection are confident of progressing past the 2009 CFU tournament and into the 2009/2010 CONCACAF Champions’ League.
W Connection are tied with Dominican club 4D Ag. Centre Bath Estate in the CFU Club Championship Round One home and away series. The Savonnetta Boys left Trinidad on Tuesday morning(today) for Dominica to take on home team CB Estate from 7pm at the Winsdor Park in Roseau on Wednesday.
They will meet again on the March 25 in Trinidad in the second tie vying for a place in Round Two.
“We always try to win every competition we participate in and this year would be no different. We want to win the CFU tournament and move on to our CONCACAF opponents,” said Stuart Charles Fevrier during one of his pre-season practice sessions.
Meantime fellow Pro League compatriots CLICO San Juan Jabloteh—another strong contender for the CFU title—will be enjoying a bye, having qualified automatically for Round Two.
Jabloteh, the 2008 Pro League Champions are tied with the winner between Inter Moengo Tapoe vs CSD Barber. Jabloteh will be at home on April 13 and will travel to the resulting winner for their away clash on April 20.
The Final Round of the competition will take place in Trinidad from May 15 – 17 with the top three Caribbean teams automatically qualifying for the CONCACAF Champions League 2009/2010 edition.
“We have little knowledge of our opponents (CB Estate),” continued the W Connection coach. “But we are going to play them two games and we are confident that after the two games we will progress. We are looking for a good start and then go on to win the Caribbean Club Championship.”
In preparation for the club’s 2009 ambitions, Fevrier added defender Glenton Wolfe, defensive midfielder Keryn Navarro—both former North East Stars players—and former United Petrotrin attacker Kevon Woodley to his roster this season.
They will add to last season’s Jonathon Frias, Oscar Torijano, Eder Gilmar Aras, Hughton Hector and Andre Toussaint to name a few.
“This season we have a talented and young squad with enough quality to get the job done in Dominica and in Trinidad and Tobago.
“We have won the CFU tournament three times already and from the onset of the club(W Connection) we want to win the CONCACAF Champions League and qualify for the World Club Championship. We are still working hard on achieving that and we know it won’t be easy.”
W Connection opted to miss last year’s CFU tournament for various reasons but says that things are looking brighter this time around.
“The conditions are better this season. Our reason for pulling out last season was purely financial. We spend a lot of money, around half a million each time, to win the Caribbean Championship and after winning the title three times we haven’t received trophies or finance and we felt that it wasn’t right. Now we feel that things have changed following last season.”
Last year Jamaican club Habour View won the CFU title, with Pro League club Joe Public finishing runners-up, Puerto Rico Islanders third and Pro League’s CLICO San Juan Jabloteh in fourth.
Joe Public then went on to impress in the CONCACAF Champions’ League playoff demolishing Major League Soccer (MLS) club New England Revolution 6:1 on aggregate to advance into the Group Stage.
However the Pro League outfit failed to impress finishing at the
bottom of their Group with just 3 points which they earned against Atlante FC 1-0 in Mexico.
“Joe Public did well last year but didn’t have the dept in their squad to go on further. But based on their performance against New England Revolution, they have given all clubs in the League confidence and we are hoping that we can draw from that and do much better this year. So this is our intention,” Fevrier ended.
