T&T women crush St Lucia
T&T Express
Natasha St Louis notched six goals to fire Trinidad and Tobago's Under-20 team to an emphatic 11-1 crushing of St Lucia in their first leg encounter of the Caribbean Football Union Women's Qualifiers on Monday night.
Captain Mariah Shade added a hat-trick while Kayla Taylor and Karyn Forbes also found the net to virtually assure T&T of advancing to the final round of qualifiers in Trinidad next month against Jamaica, Cuba and St Kitts and Nevis.
St Lucia struggled to come to grips with the quality of their opponents as T&T exploited their weaknesses to completely dominate the encounter at Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya.
The rout began as early as the sixth minute when Taylor, well known for her clever footwork, found the back of the net to put T&T ahead.
Shade then doubled her team's lead six minutes later, before St Louis added two more in the 16th and 20th minutes.
Taylor squandered a chance after being set up by midfielder Rehana Omardeen's fine diagonal pass but her parried shot landed at the feet of St Louis who pounced to complete her hat-trick in the 27th minute.
A minute later, Karyn Forbes easily penetrated a poorly constructed St Lucian wall to score T&T's sixth goal with a well-taken strike from just outside the 18-yard box. Leading 6-0 at the break, Shade continued her team's domination in the 47th minute from a well executed corner taken by Taylor and completed her hat-trick two minutes later as St Lucia's defence again went to pieces.
Taylor weaved her way back into the action when she found herself free in the 53rd minute to make a fine run on goal before nudging the ball to St Louis who tapped the ball in for her fourth.
St Louis scored again in the 67th and again in the 72nd to make it 11-0 and finish with six goals to her name.
St Lucia finally mustered up a shot on goal in the 77th which was brilliantly saved by Linfah Jones but Kwanzaa Robest scored just moments later to get her side on the scoresheet.
The teams clash again today in the second leg fixture at the same venue from 5 p.m. -CMC
TT demolish St Lucia in U-20 Women’s qualifier
By: Joel Bailey (T&T Newsday)
TRINIDAD AND Tobago crushed St Lucia 11-1 at the Marvin Lee Stadium in Macoya on Monday afternoon, in the first match of a 2010 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup play-off series, in the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Preliminary Round Group “B” series.
Natasha St Louis netted six goals, while captain and fellow striker Mariah Shade chipped in with three. Midfielders Kayla Taylor and Karyn Forbes added one each for the hosts while Kwanzaa Robest pulled one back for the St Lucians.
In the blink of an eye, the score was 3-0 with Taylor (sixth minute), Shade (12th) and St Louis (16th) on target, while St Louis completed her hat-trick with close range shots, past goalkeeper Cindy St Ange, in the 20th and 27th minutes.
Forbes rifled home a 30-metre right-footed freekick, to the left of a stranded St Ange, in the 30th before Shade also registered her treble, tapping home, from inside the six-yard box, in the 48th and 50th minutes.
St Louis got her fourth in the 53rd, finishing off a counter-attacking move involving midfielder Afiyah Matthias and Taylor and, after a goalkeeper switch by the visitors, St Louis punished Rickel Mentor with a low blast from the edge of the penalty box (67th) and a fine finish (72nd) to the near post after a wonderful diagonal ball from Forbes.
In the 79th, Robest spared total humiliation for the St Lucians with a fantastic strike, from the right flank, drilling her shot past goalie Linfah Jones (a 35th minute replacement for the injured Kimika Forbes).
The “return” leg will also take place at the Macoya venue today at 5 pm.
The aggregate winner will advance to the CFU Finals, here in Trinidad and Tobago, alongside Group “A” winners Jamaica, Group “C” table- toppers Cuba and the victorious team in Group “D” St Kitts/Nevis.
The CFU Final Round qualifiers will be staged from November 18-22, with the top three teams progressing to the CONCACAF Finals in Guatemala from January 16-28. After the CONCACAF Finals, the top three teams will be booking their spots to the 2010 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Germany.
Teams – TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO: Kimika Forbes (Linfah Jones 35th); Tiana Bateau, Khadisha Debesette, Rehana Omardeen, Cassey McKenzie; Karyn Forbes, Khadidra Debesette (Kedisha Castillo 62nd), Kayla Taylor, Afiyah Matthias (Victoria Swift 62nd); Mariah Shade (capt), Natasha St Louis. ST LUCIA: Cindy St Ange (Rickel Mentor 59th); Melaine Ishmel, Allisha Emmanuel, Myla McLean, Megesh Savery; Ellaisa Marquis, Merlina Auguste, Zanique Celestin, Hydie Sandiford (Zamarla Joseph 51st); Joanne Alphonse, Kwanzaa Robest.