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Offline Flex

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2022 T&T Pro League Thread
« on: January 03, 2021, 01:02:47 PM »
Pro League wants partnership with corporate T&T.
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian).


Corporate T&T and the government will be called upon and lend a helping hand towards the development of football in Trinidad and Tobago with funding in 2021 and beyond.

Brent Sancho, Acting Chairman of the T&T Pro League said the time is now to jumpstart T&T football, which includes facilitating an avenue by which young footballers, officials, vendors and administrators, among other professionals, can earn a living, while all the country's national teams, from junior to senior levels, will be adequately supplied, he told Guardain Media Limited on Thursday.

The former national defender now turns sports administrator dismissed claims that corporate T&T and government have been reluctant to pump money into football because of the perceived 'bacchanal in the sport', saying there is bacchanal in sports all over the world, yet corporate citizens inject funds to support.

He said: "It is time for everyone to put the country first and out young people first and better yet out sportsmen and sportswomen. You always hear the phrase there is too much bacchanal in football but guess what everything has bacchanal. It's time for corporate T&T to get involved and start being the co-pilot in the new narrative."

The former Minister of Sports said: "This is not a time for government or corporate T&T to take a stand-off approach concerning funding sports to ensure our young sportsmen and women have a future in something they like outside of the traditional academic side of life. It is a time for all hands to be on deck as we figure out how we move the sport of football and other sports, forward. We have reached a defining moment for 2021."

Only last week global communications network Digicel signed a partnership deal with the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) to the tune of US$1.4 million, which is the equivalent of 200 million Jamaican dollars. Sancho, in an immediate response to this, said it is an indication that corporate T&T do not support sports the way corporate Jamaica does which is sad.

The T&T Pro League navigated a much-needed restructuring in 2019, before the passage of the COVID19 pandemic coupled with a feud between the T&T Football Association and the FIFA, sunk football to its lowest in many years.

Sancho believes the solution to the T&T Pro League will come from a change in the existing structure, where only club owners make up the panel of decision-makers at the Board level.

"Too many clubs are getting involved in the decision-making or administrative level, and you cannot blame them for wanting to do so because clubs in T&T put out a lot of money. Somehow, however, we need to create a system where there is some level of independence. For instance, as acting chairman of the League, I think the League needs an independent chairman urgently, because at this level we need the right people, with the right skill-sets and right abilities to take the sport to a position where it can be sustainable, as well as where it can be comparable with the international standard."

The Board of Directors of the T&T Pro League meets regularly, and it will meet again on Saturday to decide whether a change in the formats of the top flights T&T Pro League and Super League, to a more National League Structure, as recommended by the team of UEFA/FIFA and CONCACAF officials in 2019, should be signed-off on or not.

« Last Edit: March 02, 2022, 01:16:37 AM by Flex »
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Offline Deeks

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #1 on: January 04, 2021, 01:30:26 PM »
The former national defender now turns sports administrator dismissed claims that corporate T&T and government have been reluctant to pump money into football because of the perceived 'bacchanal in the sport', saying there is bacchanal in sports all over the world, yet corporate citizens inject funds to support.

Wow Brent, you now changing your tune.

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #2 on: January 04, 2021, 02:17:15 PM »
Pro League wants partnership with corporate T&T.
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian).


Corporate T&T and the government will be called upon and lend a helping hand towards the development of football in Trinidad and Tobago with funding in 2021 and beyond.

Brent Sancho, Acting Chairman of the T&T Pro League said the time is now to jumpstart T&T football, which includes facilitating an avenue by which young footballers, officials, vendors and administrators, among other professionals, can earn a living, while all the country's national teams, from junior to senior levels, will be adequately supplied, he told Guardain Media Limited on Thursday.

The former national defender now turns sports administrator dismissed claims that corporate T&T and government have been reluctant to pump money into football because of the perceived 'bacchanal in the sport', saying there is bacchanal in sports all over the world, yet corporate citizens inject funds to support.

He said: "It is time for everyone to put the country first and out young people first and better yet out sportsmen and sportswomen. You always hear the phrase there is too much bacchanal in football but guess what everything has bacchanal. It's time for corporate T&T to get involved and start being the co-pilot in the new narrative."

The former Minister of Sports said: "This is not a time for government or corporate T&T to take a stand-off approach concerning funding sports to ensure our young sportsmen and women have a future in something they like outside of the traditional academic side of life. It is a time for all hands to be on deck as we figure out how we move the sport of football and other sports, forward. We have reached a defining moment for 2021."

Only last week global communications network Digicel signed a partnership deal with the Jamaica Premier League (JPL) to the tune of US$1.4 million, which is the equivalent of 200 million Jamaican dollars. Sancho, in an immediate response to this, said it is an indication that corporate T&T do not support sports the way corporate Jamaica does which is sad.

The T&T Pro League navigated a much-needed restructuring in 2019, before the passage of the COVID19 pandemic coupled with a feud between the T&T Football Association and the FIFA, sunk football to its lowest in many years.

Sancho believes the solution to the T&T Pro League will come from a change in the existing structure, where only club owners make up the panel of decision-makers at the Board level.

"Too many clubs are getting involved in the decision-making or administrative level, and you cannot blame them for wanting to do so because clubs in T&T put out a lot of money. Somehow, however, we need to create a system where there is some level of independence. For instance, as acting chairman of the League, I think the League needs an independent chairman urgently, because at this level we need the right people, with the right skill-sets and right abilities to take the sport to a position where it can be sustainable, as well as where it can be comparable with the international standard.


The Board of Directors of the T&T Pro League meets regularly, and it will meet again on Saturday to decide whether a change in the formats of the top flights T&T Pro League and Super League, to a more National League Structure, as recommended by the team of UEFA/FIFA and CONCACAF officials in 2019, should be signed-off on or not.


If it's one thing Sancho knows to do it is to strike when the iron is hot (or perceived to be). 

He is spot on.


Offline Flex

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #3 on: January 08, 2021, 02:28:47 AM »
Plans renewed for merger of Pro League and Super League.
By Joel Bailey (T&T Newsday).


THERE are renewed plans for a merger of the TT Pro League and the TT Super League, with the new competition set to be called the TT Football League.

In 2019, there were plans for a T-League, with the Pro League teams to compete in the first division and the Super League outfits to participate in the second division. That T-League would have featured a promotion and demotion system.

Clayton Morris, president of the TT Super League, revealed that the FIFA-appointed normalisation committee, headed by Robert Hadad, is considering a move to have a merger of the two top local football leagues.

During an interview on Thursday, Morris said, “I had a courtesy meeting on the 21st of December. The meeting was to outline what the plans are for, what they are calling, the TT Football League. They wanted to know what (are) the TTSL’s views on it.”

The former Strike Squad captain continued, “I told (Hadad) I couldn’t give any concrete position as the TTSL (president) because I wanted to take it to the board. Since then, we had the meeting and we are in support of the League, but we need to get an outline of the structure of how the League would be run. That was reported back to Mr Hadad (on Wednesday).”

Asked if he is confident that this new League will come to fruition, Morris replied, “I am confident that it can come off.

“We want the players to be back out there playing as (quickly) as possible but health is important. If we come together as one, with respect to getting the policy from the Ministry of Health, then it augurs well for us as one body.”

Morris added, “Hadad says (the normalisation committee) have sponsors. That would take off a big chunk off the Super League, and the Pro League, seeing that we have sponsors coming. Our thing is just to make sure we really get the teams prepared. It would really put the League in a position to be marketable.”

During the past few years, teams were unable to compete in the Super League since they were not compliant according to the TTFA (TT Football Association) stipulations.

Morris said this issue was discussed at the Super League’s first board meeting on December 29.

“We’re looking at the clubs who desperately need the assistance right now,” said Morris. “A lot of them (are) illiterate to the fact that what needs to be done to be compliant. We have (a board member) talking with these clubs to find out where they’re at and to find out the ones which most desperately need the assistance.”

Former Super League president Keith Look Loy copped some criticism for performing dual roles with FC Santa Rosa (as the club president) and Super League president.

Will Morris be relinquishing his role as UTT coach since he is the Super League president?

“My job is a football coach employed with UTT. I am a football coach by profession.”

There was talk within the local football fraternity that Look Loy was wearing too many hats.

Morris said, “I heard that. In my case, when I was approached to take this mantle (as Super League boss), I mentioned ‘(UTT) is my job’.

“I am seeing it as where I could make a contribution and that’s what I see God has me doing. I can’t be giving up my job for a voluntary (one). I see it as a service to football.”

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Flex

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #4 on: January 14, 2021, 02:25:58 AM »
Pro League, Super League aim to meet Gov't approval.
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian).


Minister of Sports Shamfa Cudjoe will await a proposal from a meeting of the T&T Pro League and T&T Super League clubs, which will be held virtually on Thursday. The gathering of football minds is aimed at determining the way forward for the sport.

The clubs' agenda, will be to discuss the idea of whether or not to revisit the concept of a newly rebranded national football structure to be called the T-League, or if they should consider another option, or continue with their independent operations. The T-League is just the name of the competition which both organisations will participate.

One thing is for sure, according to the T&T Pro League acting chairman Brent Sancho, when he spoke to Guardian Media Sports on Wednesday, is that the owners of both the Super League and Pro League clubs want to maintain their independence as affiliated organisations with the TTFA.

This means a merger or unification of the entities could see the 10 members of the Pro League and the 20-plus members of the Super League in one division, likely to be the top tier League when discussions take place, while it is to be determined which clubs would make up the second tier.

Sancho, the managing director of Pro League outfit Central FC, has been driving force behind the formation of the T-League, which was discussed at length in 2019 when businessman Lyndsay Gillette was appointed as chairman of a committee to review and restructure T&T football. The committee had been acting on recommendations from world governing body-FIFA, UEFA and CONCACAF. The other members of the committee were - Jamal Shabaz, Keith Look Loy, Terry Joseph, Anthony Moore, Antony Harford, Kamara David and Sancho.

Sancho pointed out that following a few meetings by the committee: "There was a proposal that was sent from the William Wallace-led executive to both the Pro League and Super League which had the same merger from a competition perspective but there was also a strong hint of constitutional change which would have seen the voting majority of the T&T Pro League clubs would have been marginalized. The proposal also had very little transparency as it relates to the commercial side of the league operations. I believe it is important we put all this behind us and put the country's football first."

Yesterday Cudjoe said her government stands ready to support football but will not do so blindly. Or until they receive a proposal of how the entities want to move forward with the sport.

She noted that the government is currently reviewing its position at present, as was promised three years ago when it pumped money into the Pro League for that period, which was to be followed by a period of review.

The sporting fraternity had to deal with a reduced amount of funding by the government in 2020, due largely to the outbreak of the deadly coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic which has forced the government to reduce its contributions to sporting organisations.

Government is also set to place specific emphasis on the Olympic Games which will take place in July, and will continue to facilitate athletes on their way to key international tournaments and meets in their build-up and preparations toward Tokyo 2020.

It is uncertain when a proposal will be ready for submission to the minister of sports but Sancho said the involvement of the government and corporate T&T is critical to the development of a national football structure that will put the country at the forefront.

"At the end of the day, we have had a tumultuous year in 2020, not just from COVID19, but of course, with the wranglings as it relates to the former TTFA executive and FIFA. We have had a lot of pledges from people, and from the government to corporate T&T expressing their support for football, and recognising that we obviously have to clean our house. That being said, now is the time to put a foot forward. Now we need their help more than ever. We have reached a time in T&T where it has to be a collective effort by all parties, the government, corporate T&T and the stakeholders. And of course, we have to put T&T first," Sancho explained.

With the new national football structure, Sancho said, he did not see a demise of the Pro League and the Super League, but it must also include the Regional Associations, such as the Northern Football Association (NFA), Southern FA, Eastern FA, Central FA, Tobago FA and the Eastern Counties Football Union (ECFU).

He believes the new structure will set a clear path for many young footballers moving from the zones right up to the national teams.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline Deeks

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #5 on: January 14, 2021, 11:24:18 AM »
 ???

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #6 on: March 25, 2021, 03:38:57 AM »
Domestic football is in progress in St. Kitts Nevis but at a standstill in Trinidad and Tobago.

What are the prospects of a return to play between now and the next round of WC qualifying?
« Last Edit: March 25, 2021, 03:46:55 AM by asylumseeker »

Offline Sam

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #7 on: April 11, 2021, 06:48:21 AM »
These two c000ont killing T&T football.

Terrence Deyalsingh and Roshan Parasram.

Everywhere in de world leagues running expect T&T and we don't normally get a crowd in T&T.

Brent Sancho need to grow some balls, he and Shamfa Cudjoe.

De CPL Cricket League was successful, ent.

Faster than a speeding pittbull
Stronger than a shot of ba-bash
Capable of storming any fete


Offline Tallman

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Pro League needs strong business plan to get government funding
« Reply #8 on: May 26, 2021, 08:53:57 PM »
Pro League needs strong business plan to get government funding
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian)


The T&T Pro League will have to produce a very strong business plan if it is to receive funding from the government.

Minister of Sports and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe said this on Saturday as she addressed the issues facing sports in T&T, as well as the ways the government can help, on the Andre Baptiste Radio Programme on I95.5FM.

“Football is everybody’s sport, so of course, the government will invest and contribute but their business plan has to be a sound one, and we have to do better than we did before,” Cudjoe said.

The T&T Pro League has been on a transitioning phase with a possible merger with the T&T Super League (TTSL) to form the main Leagues in the country, which is set to be comparable with the top International Leagues such as the English Premiership, the German Bundesliga and the Spanish La Liga, among others.

This process was being assisted by the sport’s world governing body- FIFA, CONCACAF AND UEFA, along with the country’s parent body the T&T Football Association (TTFA), back in 2018.

Cudjoe said her government has invested in the Pro League for some 16 years and the league is still not sustainable.

"We have invested in the Pro League from as early as 2004, that is over 16 years of investment in the Pro League that had the intention of becoming self-sustainable, and with that arrangement with the Pro League, where we said after three years have been completed, we would look at the business plan on the way forward.”

According to Cudjoe: “I knew they were making significant strides as it relates to having the Pro League and the Super League merge, and under the guidance of the TTFA, those conversations had started.

"I don’t know where they are right now, but I haven’t seen a proposal, as it relates to that. Of course, I hope it will be something that will redound to the benefit of all local athletes and the development of football."

In 2020, Cudjoe said publicly that funding was only going to be given to grassroot sports, a comment that came in the midst of the wrangling between the embattled football association which was led by William Wallace, and the sport’s world governing body FIFA over the right to replace the Wallace-led United TTFA with a FIFA-appointed Normalisation Committee.

RELATED NEWS

Cudjoe tells sports bodies: Organise yourselves
By Narissa Fraser (T&T Newsday).


SPORT Minister Shamfa Cudjoe wants local sport administrations to be better organised. She said while people would always say the ministry should “invest more money,” into these groups, self-sustenance is just as important as seeking help from the government.

Cudjoe was speaking on a Twitter “Space” – a live voice-chat feature – on Tuesday night.

The space was hosted by Caribbean Football Union (CFU) general secretary Camara David, who is also a former general secretary of the TT Football Association (TTFA).

Cudjoe said leagues including the TT Pro League – which began in 1999 – have not been “as successful as they should,” but that it isn’t necessarily the fault of the government.

She said this is actually based on “the state of football, the mal-management and mismanagement of football, the failure of these entities to come together and come up with a plan that works…

“It was supposed to be a self-sufficient initiative…Up to 2020, the taxpayer had been investing in the Trinidad and Tobago Pro League. Year after year.”

She said football takes the “giant share” of the ministry’s funding and has been doing so for years.

“You got to organise yourself,” she said. “Because taxpayers cannot carry you and only you for that long…We have 54 sporting disciplines, so we have a duty as government to not make this investment in just football, but in cricket, in hockey, in Scrabble, jump-rope…”

She recalled an incident when an unnamed sporting body booked a recreation space, then “big bad football came and wanted to use the space and expected the government to ask the other group that made the booking first so football could have its way.”

She said things cannot work like that and everyone’s sport should be respected.

“We continue to invest, but it’s not simply the government’s role. You guys, as athletic governing bodies, members clubs and so on, you have to do your part. Be organised and manage your business properly.”

Cudjoe said internationally, athletes are often funded by the private sector and she “cannot fathom why for so many different activities in T&T, the first person to turn to is the government.

"Yes, we are a facilitator, yes we provide support and funding and so on – but what are you doing? Are you going to rest the weight on the taxpayers’ dollars for the rest of your existence?

"We have to rethink that strategy.”

A member of the public asked if she felt the ministry’s resources were being spread across too many different sports, which was, in turn, causing a lack of resources.

But Cudjoe disagreed..

“What are we saying to the rugby player, the swimmer, the different people that are passionate about their sport?”

She also commended Special Olympians, saying they too are a priority.

She praised companies such as Digicel and Republic Bank as being “private-sector entities who are serious about sport and doing their part.”

But she said it is equally important for groups seeking such funding to have a clean, positive brand.

“And more importantly, that these athletes and NGBs (national governing bodies) would position themselves and organise themselves in a way that they are attracting (these companies) and their profile is nice and clean so that they can attract the funding and can carry the branding of the private sectors.

“Some of these sport divisions have so much confusion and so much madness going o,, who want to put their name to that? You also have to check yourself and that is what I keep telling the TTFA and the normalisation committee as they try to rebuild and rebrand themselves now…”

“This is not just about football and making it to the World Cup. This is about cleaning up your profile and the private sector can say, ‘I can put my name and my money behind that.’"

She said NGBs need to focus on capacity-building and succession planning.

« Last Edit: May 26, 2021, 09:46:52 PM by Flex »
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Offline Tiresais

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #9 on: May 27, 2021, 04:06:12 AM »
Too right, for too long the TTFA and Pro League have begged instead of selling T&T football. With the latter, they may need to actually hold themselves and clubs to account for their finances.

Offline Deeks

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #10 on: May 27, 2021, 04:09:08 AM »
“Football is everybody’s sport, so of course, the government will invest and contribute but their business plan has to be a sound one, and we have to do better than we did before,” Cudjoe said.

I am not too sure about football is everybody's sport. Maybe it used to be. Not now.

Offline Tallman

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Pro League determined to play this year
« Reply #11 on: May 28, 2021, 06:56:16 AM »
Pro League determined to play this year
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian)


“Government’s involvement in football around the world is a norm.” This was the response from the T&T Pro League’s Acting Chairman Brent Sancho following a statement by Minister of Sports and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe recently that the T&T Pro League will not receive any funds from her government until a proper business plan is submitted.

The Sports Minister in a recent radio interview on i95.5fm on Monday made it clear that any funds or any investment to football in particular and sports, in general, to be made by the government, will be given specifically for the growth and development of local athletes.

Cudjoe said that government has, for more than 16 years, invested in the T&T Pro League with the intention that it would become self-sufficient, but it has not happened.

Sancho told Guardian Media Sports on Wednesday that: “One of the things we have to realize is that the government’s support in football, whether it be in T&T or anywhere else in the world, it is something that is the norm. You will find it very hard to go to a country and see that the government isn’t involved in some way, form or fashion. In fact, in Spain recently, the government funded heavily the Women’s Football League, so the government’s involvement is something that is part and parcel of the development of the sport. If you look at it from what football means to this country, and the important role it plays, that alone, I expect that that will continue. I would expect that from whatever conversations, that there will be a short-term remedy, while we’re looking at the long-term picture.”

Sancho, a member of the T&T 2010 World Cup team and owner of T&T Pro League outfit- Central FC, which is commonly known as ‘The Sharks’ explained further - “It is key to understand that we need a vibrant football league to achieve our goals from a national perspective. Anytime our national team is successful, it is because we’ve had a vibrant League, and this time it’s no different. So I expect that the government would come on board and I expect that corporate T&T will play an integral role in making sure that the League will be played.”

After some 14 to 16 months without the sport being played, Sancho said the Board of the T&T Pro League and its members are very much aware that it has led to unemployment among its players and staff members which is not good at all.

According to Sancho, who is a part-time television colour analysis with Sportsmax: “We are very conscious of this situation and we are now looking at what is possible, to at least, try to play football, with all due respect to the COVID-19 measures, this season rather than later.”

Sancho, a former Minister of Sports in 2015, added that a decision was taken to stage a united League between the T&T Pro League and the Super League, discussion about a business plan is still fresh, as it involves representatives from both leagues, as well as members of the T&T Football Association which is being facilitated by the FIFA- appointed Normalisation Committee which assumed office November last year after a lengthy court battle between the former TTFA executive led by William Wallace and FIFA after the latter was removed from office.
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Offline Deeks

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #12 on: May 28, 2021, 03:48:34 PM »
“Government’s involvement in football around the world is a norm.”

I eh sure about that Brent. It varies from country to country. In many countries gov't give tax breaks to companies that put money into sports and various sports disciplines.

Offline Tallman

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T&T Pro League wants 600-800 vaccines for members
« Reply #13 on: June 16, 2021, 12:14:42 PM »
T&T Pro League wants 600-800 vaccines for members
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian)


Desperate to get the T&T Pro League active again, a request has been made to the Ministry of Health for vaccines for all of its members, comprising club members and other staff to be vaccinated in anticipation of a start soon.

Brent Sancho, chairman of the League revealed this as part of a desperate call for the football league to be revived if the country's national teams are to be successful, saying the amount needed can be from 600 to 800 vaccines.

Speaking to Guardian Media Sports on Tuesday Sancho said: "We are in dire straits now, and while we understand the call by the Minister of Sports for a proper business plan to be presented before financial assistance can be given, we must understand that we're in the midst of a pandemic (COVID-19). Now is not the time to chastise but to collaborate and find a solution."

Minister of Sports and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe is reluctant to release funds to the 22-year-old T&T Pro League, saying on a radio programme a few weeks ago, that her government has been putting money into the League for more than 16 years now, with a promise that there will be sustainability, but it has not happened.

The league's call came long before Government, via another COVID-19 update, rolled out a massive 'Vaccinate to Operate' drive just over a week ago:

"The conversation about vaccination of players within the T&T Pro League started last year when we were about to embark on a restart, and looking possibly at the Ascension League. The conversation even went as far as the discussions surrounding the purchasing of vaccines by one of the club owners of the League, so it's something that we do certainly welcome with both hands, we've had discussions over the weekend as well about that initiative.

"Clubs are currently sending in their numbers as it relates to players that are interested in vaccination. And we've also had discussions as it relates to the educational process of whether we can have the Ministry of Health, through its various offices, to have a talk, as it relates to giving out information on vaccination.

"It is a decision that one has to make, it is a personal decision but we want to make sure that our players, our staff, our employees, can make an informed decision so it's important that we give that sort of dispensation to our people," Sancho revealed.

The T&T Pro League, inactive since 2018, has been working on a COVID-19 Protocol document that will be instrumental in the League returning to play this year. The ideas in the document are expected to work in conjunction with the Ministry of Health.

Sancho in a response to Cudjoe's funding statement that government would only give money for athlete or player-development only, reminded all that club-owners in the League have collectively invested an estimated $400 million in the since its inception in of the League in January 1999, noted: "And it has been an industry that has seen great production levels as it relates to the national teams. If you look at the 2006 World Cup team, at least 85 per cent of the players at some point in time, would have at least kicked a ball in the T&T Pro League. So, a lot of conversations surrounding what has happened to the Bahamas game and the ousting of the World Cup campaign, so it's so important that we understand that this is not just a T&T Football Association issue, this is a national issue, so the most important thing is that we have a vibrant League.

"So the Ministry of Sports, corporate T&T, everyone has to come together to find a palatable solution to invest in the sport and make sure it can move forward." 
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Offline ABTrini

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Re: T&T Pro League wants 600-800 vaccines for members
« Reply #14 on: June 16, 2021, 09:57:19 PM »
T&T Pro League wants 600-800 vaccines for members
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian)


Desperate to get the T&T Pro League active again, a request has been made to the Ministry of Health for vaccines for all of its members, comprising club members and other staff to be vaccinated in anticipation of a start soon.

Brent Sancho, chairman of the League revealed this as part of a desperate call for the football league to be revived if the country's national teams are to be successful, saying the amount needed can be from 600 to 800 vaccines.

Speaking to Guardian Media Sports on Tuesday Sancho said: "We are in dire straits now, and while we understand the call by the Minister of Sports for a proper business plan to be presented before financial assistance can be given, we must understand that we're in the midst of a pandemic (COVID-19). Now is not the time to chastise but to collaborate and find a solution."

Minister of Sports and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe is reluctant to release funds to the 22-year-old T&T Pro League, saying on a radio programme a few weeks ago, that her government has been putting money into the League for more than 16 years now, with a promise that there will be sustainability, but it has not happened.

The league's call came long before Government, via another COVID-19 update, rolled out a massive 'Vaccinate to Operate' drive just over a week ago:

"The conversation about vaccination of players within the T&T Pro League started last year when we were about to embark on a restart, and looking possibly at the Ascension League. The conversation even went as far as the discussions surrounding the purchasing of vaccines by one of the club owners of the League, so it's something that we do certainly welcome with both hands, we've had discussions over the weekend as well about that initiative.

"Clubs are currently sending in their numbers as it relates to players that are interested in vaccination. And we've also had discussions as it relates to the educational process of whether we can have the Ministry of Health, through its various offices, to have a talk, as it relates to giving out information on vaccination.

"It is a decision that one has to make, it is a personal decision but we want to make sure that our players, our staff, our employees, can make an informed decision so it's important that we give that sort of dispensation to our people," Sancho revealed.

The T&T Pro League, inactive since 2018, has been working on a COVID-19 Protocol document that will be instrumental in the League returning to play this year. The ideas in the document are expected to work in conjunction with the Ministry of Health.

Sancho in a response to Cudjoe's funding statement that government would only give money for athlete or player-development only, reminded all that club-owners in the League have collectively invested an estimated $400 million in the since its inception in of the League in January 1999, noted: "And it has been an industry that has seen great production levels as it relates to the national teams. If you look at the 2006 World Cup team, at least 85 per cent of the players at some point in time, would have at least kicked a ball in the T&T Pro League. So, a lot of conversations surrounding what has happened to the Bahamas game and the ousting of the World Cup campaign, so it's so important that we understand that this is not just a T&T Football Association issue, this is a national issue, so the most important thing is that we have a vibrant League.

"So the Ministry of Sports, corporate T&T, everyone has to come together to find a palatable solution to invest in the sport and make sure it can move forward."

How is asking for a business plan chastising? Fck ifowners can't produce a business plan what the firetruck dey doing trying to run ah team- nowyuh have pure BS running a pro league
And trying to turn  this into political ping pong. - get yuh plan in place - show how yuh could be viable as a team and league- so you h want vaccines for players and the general populace is not there yet- so where is the logic. Setups - full ah BS- forever an opportunist -

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #15 on: June 16, 2021, 11:06:12 PM »
Ex-minister Anil Roberts: Government must help Pro League survive
By Ian Prescott (T&T Express)


FORMER minister of sports Anil Roberts has said that the Government of the day has an obligation to assist football, especially given the lowly state which the local game has reached.

Roberts was speaking on the latest version of the Ascension Football Show hosted by Joel Villafana, during which he discussed Trinidad and Tobago’s early exit from World Cup qualifying and the dire state of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA), which is $98 million in debt.

Roberts also said that Government has a duty to help football, since it’s the country’s number one sport.

“We have to return funding in football,” Roberts insisted. “Football alone will need an investment of $25, $30 million a year.”

Roberts, who was a top local swimming coach before assuming the sports minister portfolio during the last UNC administration, said the current sports minister had a responsibility to devise a way of working with the local football leadership to bring recovery to the sport.

“Go to Cabinet and say we are going to assist. We are going to make a plan,” Roberts said. “You have no choice. What you going to do, just leave them out there to sink, and let the sport sink, and let the children sink, and have no opportunity; and let more gunman come out?

“Sport is bigger than just dollar and sense. Sport is an avenue for opportunity. We are in a crime-riddled country; sport creates discipline. Sports fills the gap where parents are falling down, where churches are falling down, where communities and school are falling down.”

Further, Roberts said that given their mostly amateur nature, most local sporting organisations, even the few with professional status, could not survive without Government funding.

“Anybody using the phrase self-sufficiency involving sport in Trinidad and Tobago, does not understand sport,” Roberts declared.

Specifically, he said the T&T Pro League was vital to the successful performance of the national team, since it is where most national players are developed prior to going overseas.

“Government must invest in the TT Pro League,” Roberts said. “When I was there, we were pumping money into it.

“We were giving about $5 million to the administration and then another six to seven million to the clubs,” Roberts noted. “Some clubs were getting $85,000 a month to pay their wages for their players and so on.”

While agreeing that there could be improvement in the management of clubs, Robert dismissed the notion that local Pro league clubs could ever be self-sufficient, given the small market and the country’s culture.

“The TT Pro League hires about 3,650 people. So when you don’t support that or you say they have to be self-sufficient, it is really sad,” he said, “The TT Pro League is more than just football. It’s more than selling tickets. It’s an avenue to fight crime. It’s an opportunity for children who may not be so academically inclined to earn a living.

“To say that the TT Pro League need to be self-sufficient and that they are professional does not understand that we do not have a culture of going to buy tickets,” stated Roberts. “We do not have a culture of support. We can’t get a stadium filled with 20,000 people for a TT Pro League game. The largest crowds come out for the final, like the First Citizens Cup and so on — you may get four or five thousand people.”

Finally, Roberts said a sports minister also has to fight for a greater share of the national budget

“There is a pizza pie and you have to get in there and fight for that (slice of the) pie for sport,” stated Roberts. “I went in there with 32 other ministers and I fight. I raised that MPI vote from $10m to $140m,” he stated.
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Offline Deeks

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #16 on: June 17, 2021, 05:26:33 AM »
“To say that the TT Pro League need to be self-sufficient and that they are professional does not understand that we do not have a culture of going to buy tickets,” stated Roberts. “We do not have a culture of support. We can’t get a stadium filled with 20,000 people for a TT Pro League game. The largest crowds come out for the final, like the First Citizens Cup and so on — you may get four or five thousand people.”

Unfortunately, your partner Jack lose all credibility to the real fans. Yes it is true, TT does have culture of buying season tickets. We are a walk up to the window and purchase your ticket at the day of the game. But still there used to be more people at the games long ago. By the time Jack and his pro league came about, the REAL fans lost all interest. Never recovered.


Finally, Roberts said a sports minister also has to fight for a greater share of the national budget

“There is a pizza pie and you have to get in there and fight for that (slice of the) pie for sport,” stated Roberts. “I went in there with 32 other ministers and I fight. I raised that MPI vote from $10m to $140m,” he stated.



And where did all that money went ?

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #17 on: July 25, 2021, 11:36:48 AM »
Dear Editor: What’s next for T&T football? Start with dismantling current Pro League structure.
Wired868.com.


“[…] If we put our emotions aside and objectively look at the sustainability of the Pro League without government subvention, we would recognise that the league has failed and failed miserably.

“A proper conversation must be had going forward and hard decisions may have to be taken as the current structure does little or nothing for football in Trinidad and Tobago…”

The following Letter to the Editor on the way forward for Trinidad and Tobago football—after unsuccessful World Cup qualifying and Gold Cup campaigns—was submitted to Wired868 by Louis Carrington:

After a failed World Cup campaign where Trinidad and Tobago failed to beat The Bahamas, drew with Puerto Rico and won against Guyana and eventual group winners St Kitts and Nevis, a change in the technical staff was made with the appointment of Angus Eve as head coach.

His tenure stated just prior to the Concacaf Gold Cup qualifying round, which they successfully navigated by emphatically beating Montserrat and getting past French Guiana on penalty kicks. The results of the games in the main draw were two draws with Mexico and Guatemala and a loss to El Salvador.

Credit Angus Eve and his staff as there was a marked difference in the team in respect of team spirit and camaraderie. The team displayed generally good organisation in gaining a point from Mexico, the traditional Concacaf powerhouse.

In the two subsequent games, the low level of the technical ability of our individual players became very apparent and therefore made it almost impossible to make a consistently significant impact transitioning from defence to attack.

Most apparent were the fitness level and the team’s lack of a midfielder who was capable of dominating by dictating the pace of the game—speeding it up or slowing it down as necessary—while maintaining possession and playing that incisive defence splitting pass.

While I give credit to Angus Eve and the technical staff for what they achieved in the short timeframe, it must also be said that at least two members of the team who saw playing time in the tournament clearly demonstrated they were out of their depth at the international level.

If the current technical staff is retained they may do well to revisit and acknowledge that these players, without significant improvement, have no place in a national team going forward.

So, World Cup qualifiers and Gold Cup over—what next for Trinidad and Tobago football?

In analysing what’s next, it is necessary to look critically at the administration of football, the structural organisation, the development of football and realistic timelines that would benefit local football. What has the normalisation committee done since being installed by Fifa, in respect of the future of football in Trinidad and Tobago?

The committee’s mandates, according to Fifa, were:

- To address the outstanding debt by establishing a debt servicing plan that is implementable by the TTFA.

- To review and amend the TTFA’s statutes (and other regulations where necessary) and to ensure compliance with FIFA’s statutes and requirements before duly submitting them for approval to the Fifa Congress.

- To run the daily affairs of the TTFA.

- To organise and conduct elections of a new TTFA Executive Committee for a four year mandate.

Sadly, the normalisation committee has been silent. If any of this is being done no one knows, as there was never an official meeting nor any communication where the plans to achieve these mandates were made known to the stakeholders and the public at large.

If I were to grade the normalisation committee performance at this time, it would definitely be a failing grade.

To address the structural organisation of football in Trinidad, and Tobago, I would need to refer to a previous letter to the editor in which I made two important observations. Firstly, the inability of the Pro League to sustain itself and secondly the quality of players that are being produced in Trinidad and Tobago and their future.

The writer acknowledges that these are very sensitive subjects, but if we put our emotions aside and objectively look at the sustainability of the Pro League without government subvention, we would recognise that the league has failed and failed miserably.

A proper conversation must be had going forward and hard decisions may have to be taken as the current structure does little or nothing for football in Trinidad and Tobago.

Further, if we look at where our overseas players currently ply their trade, we would admit that these countries generally do not possess a significant and successful history with high standards and quality players.

Where and how do we propose to improve the quality of our players without changes in the structural organisation and a development plan that is devoid of the myopic, visionless people who seek purely their own interest?

This must be addressed with urgency. The developmental aspect of football in Trinidad and Tobago needs to be critically assessed.

Over the years, after many failed attempts at qualification in various tournaments at varying levels, there is always talk of what went wrong and the making of changes. Yet little, if anything, has changed in respect of the developmental aspect of the game.

I listened attentively to Wayne Sheppard, who has had the opportunity to work at various levels in local football, as he espoused certain views in a podcast on what is required developmentally.

After watching the technical deficiencies in basic skills that are fundamental to success of some of the national team’s members, I am in agreement with his analysis of the status of the game in Trinidad and Tobago and his recommended plan for development in principle.

A proper development plan with World Cup qualifiers 2030 or 2034 as the timeline for success should be our goal at this time. The government’s subvention for teams in the Pro League is in excess of TT$5,000,000 per year. This could be better utilised, in my view, in the development of the game.

Yes, I can hear many persons claiming that pro football and the government involvement through the provision of the subvention can be viewed in the context of crime prevention.

One can also ask in response, how many social programs can the country sustain and for how long—bearing in mind that the initial intent of social programs was never to be sources of permanent employment.

Professional football is a business and must be seen as such with proper business planning, marketing, etc. Failing this, one has to question its intent, viability, sustainability and its return on investment.

If we continue to shy away from these realities then the future of Trinidad and Tobago’s football will remain grim. The stakeholders and the country in general deserve to know what is next for football in Trinidad and Tobago, how is it going to be achieved and in what time frame. 

What better time than now to start the revival?   

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

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Vaccinate to operate: Football clubs ready for shot
« Reply #18 on: August 17, 2021, 09:12:31 PM »
Vaccinate to operate: Football clubs ready for shot
By Jelani Beckles (T&T Newsday)


ASCENSION League director Richard Ferguson is urging local footballers, administrators and stakeholders to listen to Minister of Sport and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe and get vaccinated so that football and other sports can return to some sort of normality.

Asked if Trinidad and Tobago was taking lessons from other countries in the region such as Jamaica, where sport has resumed, Cudjoe said, “I am glad you asked that question, and just like any other sector…the faster we vaccinate, the faster we could return to some level of normalcy. I want to repeat that for football, for hockey – whatever sport.”

Cudjoe was speaking on Friday during a media conference on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

She said athletes are still not rushing to get their vaccines.

“Even within the sporting sector, vaccination hesitancy, I think, is quite high. You still have some athletes who are hesitant even in going out to (the) Tokyo (Olympics). All the members of our team (were) not vaccinated.”

Ferguson, who is the managing director of Terminix La Horquetta Rangers, said his club has responded to the call by the Government to get vaccinated.

On Monday Ferguson told Newsday, “Everybody is vaccinated (at Rangers), from the management to the coaches to the players – everybody. We got our second dose already.”

Ferguson said he did not have to encourage members of the club to get the jab.

“I did not have to urge them: they wanted to take it. They were begging to take it.”

Ferguson encouraged other clubs to get vaccinated.

“We have to keep the words of the Prime Minister. He has urged the public on several occasions to get vaccinated.”

But Ferguson understands that resuming a league will have its challenges during a pandemic as the virus is still spreading.

The Jamaica Premier League (football) kicked off recently after a long hiatus. Ferguson, speaking as the Ascension director, said, “We have been ready (to start the league) since last year. We are waiting on the Government to allow contact sports.” He said members of the T&T Football Association have held discussions recently with clubs in an effort to get all local players, referees and stakeholders vaccinated.Club Sando FC and Morvant Caledonia AIA are also encouraging their members to get vaccinated.

Team administrator of Club Sando Eddison Dean said, “All our staff are vaccinated...the players I am not sure about them because we have not been allowed to train so we are not in communication because (as) a Pro League club we will have to contract players and at this point in time because there is no football we are not able to really (talk to our players).”

Dean said, “Until we get (the) okay (that) we are going to have some football then we could engage players.”

Dean is uncertain what players will represent the club when football resumes.

He said players who are interested in representing Club Sando should get vaccinated.

“Of course, that’s a must,” Dean said. Manager of Caledonia AIA Sejoux Leo-Star said, “We, as a sporting organisation, as well as one of the leaders in the T&T Pro League, we would do whatever is necessary to ensure that in order for the livelihood of our sport and the livelihood of our youths who are at risk (to) get back on the field.”

Manager of Bethel Utd Don Soverall, speaking about his players, said, “I can’t really confirm that all of them have been vaccinated, but some of them have acknowledged that they vaccinated already…and some said they will take it.”

Soverall, who said some of Bethel’s members are hesitant, believes some will be more encouraged to get vaccinated when a league is confirmed to kick off.

“If you hear that the league starting next week or next month, and they want to play, they will jump in, but they telling themselves no football is going to play, so they not fighting up too much…if football playing, they will take it.”

Manager of Petit Valley/Diego Martin Utd Derek Edwards agrees with Soverall that players will be more willing to be vaccinated if a league is planned.

“It have no football, so nobody in a hurry,” Edwards said.

But Edwards also believes players must be educated about the vaccine.

President of T&T Super League Clayton Morris also told Newsday education is key in encouraging football stakeholders.

“I think educating them (about the virus and the vaccine) could really make a difference.”
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Offline Deeks

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #19 on: August 18, 2021, 12:56:53 PM »
Players must be educated. What they have to be educated about. For the past 20 months there has been  an over abundance of info about this pandemic. Them eh children. All ah them have phones for info b
« Last Edit: August 18, 2021, 03:58:58 PM by Deeks »

Offline Trini _2026

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Things Are
« Reply #20 on: August 22, 2021, 05:47:43 AM »
QUIET ...  gosh i hope football returns in Trinidad .....
« Last Edit: August 22, 2021, 06:53:14 AM by Trini _2022 »
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/sh8SeGmzai4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" class="bbc_link bbc_flash_disabled new_win">http://www.youtube.com/v/sh8SeGmzai4</a>

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #21 on: September 01, 2021, 11:33:24 AM »
Sancho to Hyland: Not all pro leagues operate the same
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian)


"Not all football leagues in the world operate the same," said Brent Sancho, a high-ranking member of T&T Pro League outfit Central FC, as he responded to statements from national football team captain Khaleem Hyland that the T&T Pro League is not a real professional league on Monday.

Hyland's comments were made on August 26 during an interview with Guardian Media Sports after a public outcry by players for financial help during the COVID-19 pandemic, where no funding has been forthcoming from clubs, whether the players are contracted to them or not.

The T&T captain told said that as professional players, they are expected to be on contracts, whether two or three-year contracts and they ought to have been paid throughout the pandemic, which is less than two years. The steady T&T captain also called on the government to resume its funding to the Pro League but said it ought to be followed by strict measures of accountability and transparency from the clubs.

However, Sancho, who said he could not speak on behalf of the League because of its set-up, where every club has an equal say, noted that as a member of a club, he would say it is always easier for people from the outside looking in to make statements, but it is different for those who are dealing with the issues.

"Every single club in the professional league in T&T has to pass a compliance test with the national body and if they are to get funding from the government, they are to submit their payroll, their accounts, business plan etc to the government which is heavily scrutinised. The subvention as of recent, in 2016 the subventions were pulled completely during mid-season when clubs would have already budgetted out and teams already would have been spending money.

Then the subvention was $83,000 and that was yanked from nowhere. So imagine running a business with that being your budget and it has been completely yanked. So now you have to go and find more money because there is no pro league club that runs on a $50,000 or $30,000 budget. Ninety per cent of the clubs are run on a $100,000 monthly budget and this is just pure salary, I'm not talking about balls, bibs, water, ice, equipment, medical care and all these different things. So where do you think that money is coming from. So to suggest that there's anything aloft is ludicrous because the subvention is only a percentage, between 30-40 per cent of your overall budget."

Sancho, the T&T Pro League acting chairman, disagreed with Hyland's insinuation that all players should be on either a two or three-year contracts, saying that is not true.

He said: "Not every league in the world operates the same. I played football in the USL and 90 per cent of the players in the USL's contracts ended when the season ended. You can have a two-year contract in the USL and under the rules, you can get cut after year one. The MLS used to trade players left, right and centre. It had something called a waiver, so let's be real here. The T&T Pro League is not the EPL, the T&T Pro League is not a La Liga, it doh operate so. All the leagues in world football are different and have different structures and different situations."

Sancho further explained that: "In T&T it depends on the club. Some clubs have contract players for two years or three years. Before Central FC was owed $3 million in prize monies, and before the yanking of the subventions, we lost two sponsors and the subvention in one year. We had a budget of $150, 000 a month and we had to find a way. Back in those days, all the big clubs had players on two and three-year contracts, but obviously, over time, and particularly over the past three years, there has been a downturn in the economy and cubs had to tailor their suits accordingly."
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Offline Deeks

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #22 on: September 01, 2021, 06:20:41 PM »
The pro league is deficient in every aspect Brent. It needs to be reorganized.

Offline Tiresais

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #23 on: September 02, 2021, 02:16:25 PM »
He's right that its not a professional league, but it shouldn't be. No one can afford full-time contracts for players in Trinidad - the investment and fan engagement isn't there. 2 year contracts only make sense if you can pay them for 2 years and have guaranteed cash flow for it, clubs live hand-to-mouth as they never weaned themselves off government cash,

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Re: 2021 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #24 on: January 25, 2022, 01:40:01 PM »
Brent Sancho: Return of sport long overdue.
By Jelani Beckles (T&T Newsday).


THE Ministry of Sport and Community Development has announced that the safe-zone return-to-play proposal developed by the Ministry after consultation with stakeholders and officials has been approved. Sports administrators welcomed the news, but Trinidad and Tobago Pro League interim chairman Brent Sancho believes it’s long overdue.

A media release on Sunday said, “National governing bodies (NGBs) and sport serving bodies will now be able to host sporting events and execute sporting activities for fully vaccinated athletes, coaches, officials, and administrators at specific sporting facilities.”

Since the covid19 pandemic started to affect T&T in March 2020 sport has been on the sidelines, with few exceptions being made. National athletes and teams have been permitted to train periodically during the pandemic. A few sports, including tennis and golf, have been allowed.

Fans who are vaccinated will also be allowed to attend sporting events.

“Approval has also been granted for fully vaccinated spectators to attend events at 50 per cent facility capacity for outdoor events, and 25 per cent facility capacity for indoor events subject to guidelines to be issued by the Ministry of Health.

“The new Public Health Regulations will be published today (Sunday) and will take effect from tomorrow Monday, January 24, 2022.”

In October, certain sectors were allowed to reopen for vaccinated people at 50 per cent capacity. Gyms, casinos and cinemas were also given the green light.

Sancho felt little joy, saying Sunday’s announcement should have been made a long time ago.

“I think obviously for me it’s long overdue. It is something I felt could have been done a while back.”

Sancho said the Government showed “zero enthusiasm” during the pandemic to resume sports.

“Many should say you should just be happy. It is hard to be happy, because from where I sit this could have been dealt with a long time ago.”

Sancho said there was more zeal to host the Hero Caribbean Premier League in T&T in 2020 and the 2022 Under-19 World Cup now being played in the Caribbean, including T&T.

The former national defender said it will be a “huge challenge” to get the funding to run local leagues and tournaments with so many companies struggling financially during the pandemic.

President of the TT Cricket Board (TTCB) Azim Bassarath welcomed the news. “Great news, we are very happy for the news,” Bassarath said.

“We have made this call at our press conference earlier this month...we at the TTCB are ready to go. We have had everything in place (and were) only waiting for this announcement.”

Bassarath said the T&T cricket fraternity is 90 per cent vaccinated.

“We have made an appeal to cricketers to get vaccinated...we had already set the tone that where only vaccinated people will be allowed to participate in our tournaments.”

Multiple tournaments for senior and junior cricketers are planned from February-June.

President of the National Association of Athletics Administrations George Comissiong was elated. “For us, it is excellent news. Our athletes have been waiting for quite a while to resume competition. We did have meets last year, but they were insufficient.”

Comissiong said with the Carifta Games less than three months away it is especially welcome news for the junior athletes preparing for the games, carded for Jamaica in April. He said a development meet is being planned for next weekend to get athletes prepared.

During the pandemic, NGBs, national athletes and sporting enthusiasts have been clamouring for the return of sports.

National senior men’s football coach Angus Eve, after T&T’s 5-0 defeat to Bolivia on Friday, said no club competition in T&T is having a “massive” effect on the national team.

Eve said, “A national team is not a club team and is not supposed to train week in, week out to get players fit, and probably have a match once every month, which is when usually the (international) windows are.

“You’re supposed to have competitive club football playing so the guys can get and build their match fitness there and then you select them based on what you see them do in those environments.”

Coaches, players and administrators of local football marched through Port of Spain on November 11 isn a demonstration of the desire to resume not only resume football but sports in general.

The protest followed Government’s decision to blank the Ascension League’s proposal to resume football.

Leading up to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which was held in July/August 2021, national track and field athletes only had a limited number of meets to compete in locally. Only the athletes based overseas and those able to travel competed regularly. T&T ended the Olympics without a medal for the first time since the 1992 Barcelona Games.

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Offline Flex

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Re: 2022 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #25 on: March 02, 2022, 01:17:40 AM »
Minister Cudjoe blasts T&T Pro League, TTFA.
By Walter Alibey (T&T Guardian).


Minister of Sports and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe is blasting two of football's key stakeholders- the T&T Pro League and the T&T Football Association, as she called on them to be serious about the business of the sports.

Cudjoe's comment came amid feverish attempts by her and her government to satisfy the demand for sports to be returned to play, following the total shutdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Cudjoe, who admitted to doing minor running here and there, had been the subject of major attacks by members of the football fraternity, some accusing her of stifling football.

In January, Cudjoe responded by issuing a return-to-sport order in safe zones, which, although it was well-received, has not led to actual on-the-field play. This she blamed on the inaction of the sport's key stakeholders.

"We're moving towards a place of getting serious about the business of sports and T&TFA, Pro League and all those stakeholders have to get serious about the business of sports too.

The way people were crying out before January when the announcement was made, I expected more applications, especially from national governing bodies and the more organised groups. The way, for instance, the Pro League was crying out, I expected to see the Pro League and the T&TFA pull up their socks and get out there but that is not happening.

The pro league was crying out and saying we are suffering football and all that kind of comment and now that the ban has been lifted since when, where is the pro league, where is the T&TFA, where is this Unified League they have been talking about.

You have Ascension running out before the Pro League, you have this other group- Brian Jordan Under-19 League and they. They're getting ready, they're doing the back and forth with the TTFA right now, we've been talking about their support and so on."

According to Cudjoe: "You have other community groups and so on getting ready, you have Carenage getting together to do community football, so I am just saying that I expected some of the organised groups to show their return to play, their activities.

The response has been good from the national governing bodies and sport serving bodies but I was looking specifically at the ones who have been agitating before and I don't see them saying anything."

Only recently Brent Sancho, owner of T&T Pro League outfit Central FC called on the government to figure out how it was going to support the T&T Pro League financially, noting that the league is and has always been critical as a provider of players to the country's national teams.

Sancho also made it clear that leagues around the world all receive support from their respective governments.

However, Cudjoe said: " The pro league has to figure out what is its real argument because when we went in to deal with the pro league to have the three-year arrangement, the agreement was after the three years of support in which we would have provided about $11.6 million for them to run their league, for them to come back with a plan.

They wanted to unite the T&T Super League and the pro league and so on in collaboration with the T&TFA. I think they're having their own issues at that level as it relates to how this league is actually going to work.

They were to submit their way forward, their plan of action but this has not come as yet, so how do you expect the government or me to fund that application that is not before us, that we've been calling out for, for however long.

I saw someone saying I stifled football, but where are the football stakeholders who are supposed to be out there doing what they need to do to ensure that football benefits the lives of these young people in these communities, and that T&TFA returns to some level of normalcy, and that the clubs are actually out there playing and not only providing athletic opportunities but income-generating opportunities for the people who rely on sports as a means of income.

The real measure of a man's character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out.

Offline maxg

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Re: 2022 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #26 on: March 02, 2022, 02:49:04 AM »
Gie dem Shamfa, like they want allyuh, paydem, organize and play the football too. No organized plan no funding, especially when after those fund givers have no say.
No words, no trash papers, show a organized plan that helps develop the sport or get out the way.

Offline asylumseeker

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Re: 2022 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #27 on: March 02, 2022, 04:50:31 AM »
Gie dem Shamfa, like they want allyuh, paydem, organize and play the football too. No organized plan no funding, especially when after those fund givers have no say.
No words, no trash papers, show a organized plan that helps develop the sport or get out the way.

The disorder gives Ms. Cudjoe permission to "wine on dem" but there are areas in which the MoS can drive sport [in the meantime] by way of pushing policy reformulations that require active coordination with other Cabinet portfolios. Set the framework in which anyone awaking from sleep or slumber could thrive. Incentivization of the private sector to invest in sport should be tied to the broader drivers of the economy and should come with a whip rather than a brush.

Sport remains an activity of lip service restrained by government's purse strings and insufficient insertion of domestic private capital. Also, why can't sport in T&T be a sector in which foreign direct investment is courted?
« Last Edit: March 02, 2022, 04:53:07 AM by asylumseeker »

Offline maxg

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Re: 2022 T&T Pro League Thread
« Reply #28 on: March 02, 2022, 07:15:15 AM »
Gie dem Shamfa, like they want allyuh, paydem, organize and play the football too. No organized plan no funding, especially when after those fund givers have no say.
No words, no trash papers, show a organized plan that helps develop the sport or get out the way.

The disorder gives Ms. Cudjoe permission to "wine on dem" but there are areas in which the MoS can drive sport [in the meantime] by way of pushing policy reformulations that require active coordination with other Cabinet portfolios. Set the framework in which anyone awaking from sleep or slumber could thrive. Incentivization of the private sector to invest in sport should be tied to the broader drivers of the economy and should come with a whip rather than a brush.

Sport remains an activity of lip service restrained by government's purse strings and insufficient insertion of domestic private capital. Also, why can't sport in T&T be a sector in which foreign direct investment is courted?

With the percieved corruption of FIFA having to install a Normalization committee,The blacklist and fallout of world cup aftermath (tkt or leave it),  the other Jack Warner fiasco (regardless of all else who was involved -but Jack name broadcast as if was the only and forever culprit). The lack of proper and concrete organizational plans. The Fenwick/Griffith scholarship and Ntl team fiasco, the historical changing of sport suppliers/sponsors...hardly anybody would put a name on that shirt until there is an actual track record or a series of successes. None of which seems potentially evident at the moment. Till then, we have to band we belly and Bol etc..

 

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