T&T national team's missing pieces

[Tallman]

T&T national team's missing pieces
By Ian Prescott (T&T Express)

Like chess, football is a game of strategy. Get the right pieces in the right places and you have the makings of a good team.

Going into the 2010 Digicel Caribbean Cup qualifying series from November 2-6 in Trinidad and Tobago, national coach Russell Latapy has gotten mediocre results, which have seen the Soca Warriors lose 3-1 and 3-0 to Jamaica and Panama, respectively, and more recently beaten Antigua & Barbuda 1-0 and drew 1-1 with Guyana.

These are hardly performances of a country looking to qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Great teams, though, are built in steps. However, while Latapy has put faith in locally-based players as he struggles to build a squad capable of regaining the Caribbean Cup, he has consistently left out 26-year-old Chris Birchall (LA Galaxy), 27-year-old Darryl Roberts (Denzilpour), 26-year-old Osei Telesford (Puerto Rico Islanders) and 29-year-old San Jose Earthquakes striker Scott Sealy--all players with Caribbean Cup and World Cup qualifying experience.

And, more importantly, available to play in the Caribbean Cup finals to be contested in Martinique from November 26-December 6.

Who knows, even 21-year-old Khaleem Hyland, who plays his football in Belgium, might be available if called up.

Looking at another national team, there have also been many rumours about why T&T women's coach Jamaal Shabazz goes into war in the upcoming CONCACAF final round of Women's World Cup qualifying in Mexico without Ahkeela "Darcel" Mollon, his most penetrative player.

Mollon, 25, is Trinidad and Tobago's only professional woman footballer and the first to play with a team in Europe after signing for Sweden's Kvarnsvedens two years ago. She now plays for Djurgården, where she started for 53 minutes last month (September 26) in a 2-1 loss to Sunnanå.

Mollon has been on the national team since a teenager and was a member of the team who finished second to Venezuela at the CAC Games in July.

A University of South Carolina graduate, Mollon excelled in the Caribbean leg of the CONCACAF qualifiers in Trinidad earlier this year when Trinidad and Tobago topped their group, beating a North-American-based Guyana team into second.

What Mollon has most of all is speed, a quality that kills many North American teams. Strange that she is now not being considered.

In the case of the senior men's team, one wonders whether it's a case of Latapy not appreciating the contribution of a player like Birchall, who may not have the silky touches, but has his own gifts.

Great players sometimes fail to appreciate the contribution of lesser lights than themselves. Headlines are seldon written about the player who consistently and quietly wins the ball back, or the defender who stops the goal, but they are no less important.

One thing that Dutchman Leo Beenhakker preached when coaching T&T to the 2006 World Cup is that good teams need players who can put the ball in the net, and those who can win back the ball.

Birchall is all heart. He runs all day, tackles all day, and also has a wicked shot which led to the equaliser in the home leg of the 2006 World Cup playoff with Bahrain.

Birchall is young, has played in England and at the World Cup, and is currently playing regularly for the best team in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the USA, the LA Galaxy, where he plays alongside stars such as David Bechkam (when fit) and Landon Donovan.

What makes players in our mediocre Pro League any better than this guy?

And Darryl Roberts has played at the top level in Holland, scoring great goals against PSV Eindhoven and Ajax, and also in Turkey.

Roberts emerged at the 2007 Caribbean Cup and the 2008 CONCACAF Gold Cup under then-T&T coach Wim Rijsbergen, who, despite the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation's (TTFF) foolhardiness in firing the Dutchman, was a very good coach.

Remember, it was the likes of the hard-working Roberts and Petrotrin player Jerrol Forbes who turned around the 2010 World Cup campaign with a victory in Bermuda, when the European-based pros Stern John and Jason Scotland lost the opening match at home to the same opposition.

Like Roberts, Osei Telesford came to prominence under Rijsbergen at the '07 Caribbean Cup and the Gold Cup the following year. A player who has played in both defence and midfield for Trinidad and Tobago, Telesford has appeared regularly for the Puerto Rico Islanders, including when keeping Donovan quiet when the Islanders upset the Galaxy 4-1 in a CONCACAF Champions League match last July.

Sealy has played in the USA and Israel and was a fringe player in Beenhakker's squad for much of the 2006 World Cup qualifying campaign.

Compared to the national players struggling to make an impact against Guyana, Sealy and company are far more experienced.

The question remains–have coaches Latapy and Shabazz gotten all their pieces right?

It could be that none of the above-mentioned players are good enough, or maybe they don't even fit in the coaches plans, but, in a fair world, should they not at least be given a chance to either succeed or fail?

One thing much-maligned former T&T coach, Colombian Francisco Maturana, did was look at players.

Unlike the current national men's coach, both Rijsbergen and Maturana and his staff were ever-present at Pro League games, where they would have seen emerging talent, or big names who were fading and no longer deserved a pick.

Maturana, especially, got a lot of licks–from people who don't go to local matches–for selecting players who were looking good in local football.

And despite failing to inspire the best out of Trinidad and Tobago, Maturana at least made a habit of getting the better of Caribbean teams, including Guyana, who they beat at least four times in 2008.

Latapy has only been able to get a 1-1 draw with the Guyanese.

"Latas" was a great player and everyone in Trinidad and Tobago hopes he turns out to be a genius coach as well. But, if things don't turn around soon, signals coming from the TTFF's advisers, and even Sports Minister Anil Roberts, indicate that Latapy may not be in charge after the Caribbean Cup finals in December.

Let's hope that he does not make the same mistakes of past coaches, who did not immediately see the worth of a David Nakhid. Let's hope he put all the pieces together correctly.

[injunchile]

Well it"s time someone tells the Coach some home truths. Some one is reading this Forum and is willing to get it out in the public domian. Congrats to the reporter for having some testicular fortitude. Congrats Mr Prescott.
Maybe The Manager will respond.

[Dumplingdinho]

one of my friends talks to latas on a regular basis so recently i asked him if he and latas does talk about the current football situation and his response was not really but latas did say that he is frustrated with these players since they can't even control a ball and make a proper pass.

I agree with latas 100% about his assessment but why is he frustrated when he is picking the players?  There are other players better than akile edwards, makan hislop, etc., those other players are not supremely talented but the general opinion is they are better than the current group being selected.

so if latas really said that then that leads to the following questions;

who is picking the players?
is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.
what are his next steps since he is frustrated?  Frustrated people don't perform well.
could it be case he can't work with players less talented than himself?  I am sure it hard for him to work with guys that can't do stuff that was easy for him.

[de_redman]

Biggest missing piece - A good coach 

[College]

one of my friends talks to latas on a regular basis so recently i asked him if he and latas does talk about the current football situation and his response was not really but latas did say that he is frustrated with these players since they can't even control a ball and make a proper pass.

I agree with latas 100% about his assessment but why is he frustrated when he is picking the players?  There are other players better than akile edwards, makan hislop, etc., those other players are not supremely talented but the general opinion is they are better than the current group being selected.

so if latas really said that then that leads to the following questions;

who is the picking the players?
is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.
what are his next steps since he is frustrated?  Frustrated people don't perform well.
could it be case he can't work with players less talented than himself?  I am sure it hard for him to work with guys that can't do stuff that was easy for him.

Interesting take on the situation.

It goes deeper than the fact that players cant trap and make a proper forward pass.. we know the techincal ability or lack of ability of these players.. this is quite visible. What is not easily seen is the lack of effort and motivation, there seemingly is no true commitment in the way they play..some argue that this is a result of the dark cloud that has consumed T&T football since the blacklist.

[Sam]

Latapy is a dunce bat. And Jamal Shabaaz worst.

[Jumbie]

one of my friends talks to latas on a regular basis so recently i asked him if he and latas does talk about the current football situation and his response was not really but latas did say that he is frustrated with these players since they can't even control a ball and make a proper pass.

I agree with latas 100% about his assessment but why is he frustrated when he is picking the players?  There are other players better than akile edwards, makan hislop, etc., those other players are not supremely talented but the general opinion is they are better than the current group being selected.

so if latas really said that then that leads to the following questions;

who is picking the players?
is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.
what are his next steps since he is frustrated?  Frustrated people don't perform well.
could it be case he can't work with players less talented than himself?  I am sure it hard for him to work with guys that can't do stuff that was easy for him.

a 1 foot cokey eye duck, with one wing trimmed better than he oui!

[Cocorite]

one of my friends talks to latas on a regular basis so recently i asked him if he and latas does talk about the current football situation and his response was not really but latas did say that he is frustrated with these players since they can't even control a ball and make a proper pass.

I agree with latas 100% about his assessment but why is he frustrated when he is picking the players?  There are other players better than akile edwards, makan hislop, etc., those other players are not supremely talented but the general opinion is they are better than the current group being selected.

so if latas really said that then that leads to the following questions;

who is picking the players?
is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.
what are his next steps since he is frustrated?  Frustrated people don't perform well.
could it be case he can't work with players less talented than himself?  I am sure it hard for him to work with guys that can't do stuff that was easy for him.

a 1 foot cokey eye duck, with one wing trimmed better than he oui!

  ooh gude, long time I eh heah dat

[dwn]

is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.

i think that is the first and most important question. i'm in no position to answer it because i don't follow the local league enough. but from the little i've seen, there are players who look poor on the international stage but look like generals in the TT pro league. and when i think of that, it always raises that question - do people really know what they talking about when they assume that some other player they like in the pro league can do better than who is being selected?

i don't doubt that there are a few players who haven't gotten the opportunity, that could do a better job of rising to the occasion/international stage. but i doubt people's judgments on the matter, cause I don't think it's easy to recognize who these players are from watching the pro league.

[Arazi]

is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.

i think that is the first and most important question. i'm in no position to answer it because i don't follow the local league enough. but from the little i've seen, there are players who look poor on the international stage but look like generals in the TT pro league. and when i think of that, it always raises that question - do people really know what they talking about when they assume that some other player they like in the pro league can do better than who is being selected?

i don't doubt that there are a few players who haven't gotten the opportunity, that could do a better job of rising to the occasion/international stage. but i doubt people's judgments on the matter, cause I don't think it's easy to recognize who these players are from watching the pro league.

That's the thing, I watch Makan Hislop play for Joe Public in CCL and I wonder if this is the same player everyone maligns for being terrible for national team. He generally looks the most competent of their back four. And is not just me who thinks so, ESPN commentator Shep Messing twice stated in different good he found Hislop to be a good player stuck in a poor defensive system for Joe Public.

[Sam]

That's the thing, I watch Makan Hislop play for Joe Public in CCL and I wonder if this is the same player everyone maligns for being terrible for national team. He generally looks the most competent of their back four. And is not just me who thinks so, ESPN commentator Shep Messing twice stated in different good he found Hislop to be a good player stuck in a poor defensive system for Joe Public.

Consistency is the name of the game. You cant have one good game and 20 bad ones.

[Controversial]

one of my friends talks to latas on a regular basis so recently i asked him if he and latas does talk about the current football situation and his response was not really but latas did say that he is frustrated with these players since they can't even control a ball and make a proper pass.

I agree with latas 100% about his assessment but why is he frustrated when he is picking the players?  There are other players better than akile edwards, makan hislop, etc., those other players are not supremely talented but the general opinion is they are better than the current group being selected.

so if latas really said that then that leads to the following questions;

who is picking the players?
is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.
what are his next steps since he is frustrated?  Frustrated people don't perform well.
could it be case he can't work with players less talented than himself?  I am sure it hard for him to work with guys that can't do stuff that was easy for him.

nightmare is right, if latas is not picking the team and players, who is?

so is the team being set up for a fall, that is the real question. and latas cant complain bc i see way better players in tt and outside that are not getting pick, so what the hell he talking about if he is picking the team.

making it seem like the locals are no good, when its really his coaching.

[Mad Scorpion a/k/a Big Bo$$]

is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.

i think that is the first and most important question. i'm in no position to answer it because i don't follow the local league enough. but from the little i've seen, there are players who look poor on the international stage but look like generals in the TT pro league. and when i think of that, it always raises that question - do people really know what they talking about when they assume that some other player they like in the pro league can do better than who is being selected?

i don't doubt that there are a few players who haven't gotten the opportunity, that could do a better job of rising to the occasion/international stage. but i doubt people's judgments on the matter, cause I don't think it's easy to recognize who these players are from watching the pro league.

That's the thing, I watch Makan Hislop play for Joe Public in CCL and I wonder if this is the same player everyone maligns for being terrible for national team. He generally looks the most competent of their back four. And is not just me who thinks so, ESPN commentator Shep Messing twice stated in different good he found Hislop to be a good player stuck in a poor defensive system for Joe Public.

The same can be said of the favored pinyatta Aklie Edwards.  When playing for DF he handles himself like ah boss.  Also on more than one ocassion on the national team he has outperformed the rest of defenders, yet every opportunity that presents itself man does say X Y & Z better.  But how do we know that?  AE told me personally that he does still be nervous at times but he also let me know that he follows the coaches orders in terms of his role on the pitch.  So while at times he makes mistakes I think in general because he follows the coaches orders is why Mats and Latapy has seemed to favor him over other players.  So maybe the breakdown is not just with the players and their skills but the overall coaching tactics being applied.

[dwn]

is the general opinion correct that there are better local players than edwards and makan?  The assumption here that he was not looking at foreign base players such as julius and yohance in recent friendlies, only looking at locals.

i think that is the first and most important question. i'm in no position to answer it because i don't follow the local league enough. but from the little i've seen, there are players who look poor on the international stage but look like generals in the TT pro league. and when i think of that, it always raises that question - do people really know what they talking about when they assume that some other player they like in the pro league can do better than who is being selected?

i don't doubt that there are a few players who haven't gotten the opportunity, that could do a better job of rising to the occasion/international stage. but i doubt people's judgments on the matter, cause I don't think it's easy to recognize who these players are from watching the pro league.

That's the thing, I watch Makan Hislop play for Joe Public in CCL and I wonder if this is the same player everyone maligns for being terrible for national team. He generally looks the most competent of their back four. And is not just me who thinks so, ESPN commentator Shep Messing twice stated in different good he found Hislop to be a good player stuck in a poor defensive system for Joe Public.

The same can be said of the favored pinyatta Aklie Edwards.  When playing for DF he handles himself like ah boss.  Also on more than one ocassion on the national team he has outperformed the rest of defenders, yet every opportunity that presents itself man does say X Y & Z better.  But how do we know that?  AE told me personally that he does still be nervous at times but he also let me know that he follows the coaches orders in terms of his role on the pitch.  So while at times he makes mistakes I think in general because he follows the coaches orders is why Mats and Latapy has seemed to favor him over other players.  So maybe the breakdown is not just with the players and their skills but the overall coaching tactics being applied.

The "breakdown" is more likely the difference in standard between the pro league level and the international game - faster pace, more pressure etc.

[dwn]

Picking local based to play international football is kind of like the draft system in US sports, where NCAA come like the TT Pro League, and MLS come like international football. (For the sake of an analogy).

You basically trying to predict how well a player will perform at a high level based on how they perform at a lower level. And so its inevitable that you will end up picking men who were stars at the lower level (the Makans etc) and seeing them flop when they make the step up because they couldn't adapt to the change in physical demands, tactics etc - just like how some top draft picks flop.

The problem is there isn't a fool proof way of knowing who will be able transfer their performance from one level to next cause essentially you comparing two different games.

[AB.Trini]

who doh hear/read/listen does feel.

[Spursy]

It's about time Latas find himself a place to rent and start selling roti. Enough is enough, why wait till we dont qualify? Fire him now.

[weary1969]

It's about time Latas find himself a place to rent and start selling roti. Enough is enough, why wait till we dont qualify? Fire him now.

Because d fella wit d fro was allowed 2 continue so let him ride out after d competition.