Joe Public in positive mode ahead of CFU second round
ttproleague.com
Bmobile Joe Public fresh from receiving its 2009 Team of the Year award last Wednesday is very confident ahead of this week's Caribbean Football Union Club Championship second round.
Head coach Derek King who picked up the Coach of the Year award during the TT Pro League 2009 Awards ceremony said that his side is well prepared for the CFU second round.
"So far preparations are at best. The players are all confident and eager to get into things," said the Joe Public coach.
Joe Public will be against Walking Boys of Suriname on Wednesday afternoon from 6pm at the Marvin Lee Stadium and against System 3 of St. Vincent and the Grenadines from 8pm at the Larry Gomes Stadium on Sunday in Group C. The winner of the Group will advance to the Final round of the Club Championship which will be played between April 28 - May 10, 2010.
However King could be without 2010 wingback signing Nigel Daniel due to a groin injury.
But no stress says the 2009 Coach of the Year.
"We will continue monitoring Daniel's recovery," said King. "But if he is not ready in time, we have a wonderful bunch of players available."
"We also have a new addition in 20 year-old T&T U23 defender Jevon Morris from St. Ann's Rangers and he has been listed as reserve player. If Daniel isn't fit in time, then Morris will join the 20-man squad."
Newly signed American attacking midfielder Daniel Bulls will not debut for the Lions this week according the King.
The Joe Public coach explained that Bulls isn't of the desired fitness level.
"We haven't picked him(Bulls) for this phase of the tournament because of the level of fitness the team is at right now. We chose to leave him out of the squad because his fitness level is not where we want it.
"But he is on a fitness plan with the trainers to get him level with the rest of the team in time for the start of the Pro league season."
Joe Public's 20-man squad is made up of goalkeepers Marvin Phillip, Glenroy Samuel and Andre Marchan, defenders Carlyle Mitchell, Makan Hislop, Radanfah Abu Bakr, Kareem Moses, Marvin Manswell, Keion Goodridge, Nigel Daniel*(Jevon Morris) and Jason Springer, midfielders Kareem Young, Trent Noel, Marcus Joseph, Yu Hoshide, Hayden Tinto and Micah Lewis, and forwards Conrod Smith, Trent Lougheed, Kerry Baptiste, Gorean Highly and Andre Toussaint.
Tough CFU group says Fenwick
ttproleague.com
“We’ve got our work cut out,” said San Juan Jabloteh coach Terry Fenwick ahead of this week’s Caribbean Football Union(CFU) Club Championship second round matches.
Fenwick believes his side is seeded in the most difficult group of the second round—against Guyanese club Alpha United and Puerto Rican side River Plate in Group D.
Jabloteh will tackle Alpha from 8pm on Wednesday at the Marvin Lee Stadium and River Plate from 6pm on Sunday at the Larry Gomes Stadium.
“We’ve got an extremely hard group,” continued the returning Jabloteh Technical Director. “Alpha has Odinga Lumumba as president of the club and he has been attracting a number of good things. They have around six Jamaicans as well as the best talents in Guyana in their squad.
“While River Plate is a top club in Puerto Rico winning their domestic League last season and has USL aspirations. They have quite a number of Argentines in their starting team and recently came off an Argentina tour,” explained Fenwick.
River Plate founded in 2007 are runners up in the 2007-2008 Puerto Rican Championship and winners in 2008-2009.
Fenwick went on to add that although his side boasts a number of young talented players, they haven’t had competitive matches during pre-season.
“It’s been really difficult for us to get some friendly games,” he said. “We requested matches with some of the better clubs locally however they turned us down.
“We don’t have lot of money to throw around at this time so we´ll be in camp, have a few training sessions and maybe sharpen up on some set pieces,” explained the former England international.
