Jamaica next
Soca Warriors stay unbeaten to top group
By Ian prescott ian.prescott@trinidadexpress.com
Story Created: Oct 13, 2014 at 8:43 PM ECT“It’s about time Trinidad and Tobago win the Caribbean Cup again,” declared Cardiff City striker Kenwyne Jones, who, until a week ago, had not kicked a ball in the Caribbean’s premier football championship. Now, he’s getting ambitious, wanting to win T&T the Cup for the first time in 13 years. “If we do win the Caribbean Cup we get into the Copa America in 2016,” Jones said. “That is the added prize at the end.”
On Sunday night, Jones captained the Soca Warriors to a 1-0 win over Antigua and Barbuda, as T&T ended its Caribbean Cup Group 7 qualifying semi-final series unbeaten. Kevin Molino’s 45th minute goal sufficed to see the Soca Warriors past Antigua & Barbuda, after earlier in the tournament beating Dominican Republic (6-1) and St Lucia (2-0) over a five-day period.
T&T now join Antigua & Barbuda, Martinique, Curacao, Haiti, French Guiana, hosts Jamaica and defending champions Cuba to contest the eight-team Caribbean finals, for which the 2014 champions earn a special prize— automatic entry to a special centennial edition of the Copa Centro Americana tournament, involving teams such as Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, Mexico and the US. The Caribbean Cup’s top four also qualify automtically for next year’s CONCACAF Gold Cup.
A victim of his own success, Jones never got the chance to play in the Caribbean Cup before, having ten years ago left for English club Southampton as a 20-year-old. “Our first focus really was these qualifying games here, and now that we have done that, we are moving on to the tournment in November and hopefully we can take each game as it comes, and also put a little pressure on ourselves to win the Cup.”
Jones added: “I think that the group that we have at the moment is quite strong, and is definitely a special group that could do big things in the next few years to come. ”
US-based Orlando City striker Molino was scoring his fourth goal in two matches as T&T won a highly, tactical match which produced very few chances.
Seven England-born players brought Antigua & Barbuda a defensive concentration and calm organisation rarely seen in their teams, as the Soca Warriors worked all night on breaking through a rock-solid defensive wall.
Molino produced the one moment of magic which the “Benna Boys” failed to contain. Taking Jones’ inward pass, a little “shimmy” provided Molino an extra few yards of space, and he put a low shot past goalie Brenton Muhammad. Showing strong defensive resolve, Antigua & Barbuda sat back, were content to stay organised behind the ball and allowed few chances.
“I was very impressed with Antigua. I make a prediction. I think we will see them playing in the Gold Cup,” T&T head-coach Stephen Hart said after the game. “Very young team, seven players playing in the English leagues. Quality.”
T&T’s Hughtun Hector also had two rare openings in the second half, including a “shot” down the midde which stung the fingers of the Antigua & Barbuda goalie. And defensively, T&T were comfortable, troubled only by the occassional counter-attack from striker Peter Byers.
“We knew how they were going to play and they did exactly as we thought. I though we executed well,” Hart said. “We knew that they wanted a point, and would sit, try to pull us forward. Try to sit there and see what happens, and if the catch us on the counter, they catch us on the counter.
‘’So, I told the players don’t throw yourselves into it, just be patient and try to play around it. If you get one or two chances, and if you take them, the game’s over, “Hart said. “I think they had one chance.”