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16
Tue, Apr
Match Report
Trinidad & Tobago Panama
T&T flag Panama
Kenwyne Jones (34')
Collin Samuel (40')

International Friendly
DateVenueLocationAttendance
2006-10-11Hasely Crawford StadiumPort-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago0


Jones, Samuel give T&T win


The T&T senior national football beat Panama 2-1 in its second friendly international match in five days at the Hasley Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo to round out an eventful year of football.
T&T got the butterflies out of the way early as, in the first minute, Carlos Edwards saw his ball across the six yard box unclaimed after combining well with Kenwyne Jones on the right flank and in the 4th Stern John saw his attempted lob easily picked out of the air by Panama ’keeper Oscar Mc Farlane.

Jones was given the nod by the gaffer and he partnered T&T’s captain on the evening Stern John in attack while Avery John started ahead of David Atiba Charles, while Trent Noel started in centre mid-field in place of Dwight Yorke, who went back to England after Saturday’s 5-0 win over St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Panama, always a threat with its characteristic short-passing style had its first look at goal after Blas Perez slipped the ball through to Anel Canales only for T&T custodian Jan Michael Williams come off his line to smother the opportunity.

The match was being played in front a slightly larger audience than on Saturday, the T&T team’s approach to the match was cautious but combative against the Panamanians, who played a more direct game, trying to slip the ball through to their forwards.

In the 19th minute Panama recorded its first shot from a free-kick just at the edge of the area but Gabriel Gomez’s blast was just overbar.

The T&T crowd saw this country’s Under-20 team win 4-0 over Barbados with Lester Peltier (2), Aaron Downing and Atullah Guerra getting the goals for the local boys and was therefore anxious to see the seniors get off the mark against Panama.

In the 22nd minute Jones again sparked to life swivelling around three defenders and putting his shot wide of the right upright, no goal yet but a signal of intent from the young man.

John had his first attempt in the 27th minute taking a bite of Jones’ left side cross only to see the ball trickle wide.

The service to the T&T forwards left much to be desired but Jones made the most of what he had to work with.

After a 33rd minute defensive scramble on the left side Jones showed great determination as he ran down Avery John’s clearance, intelligently anticipated Carlos Rivera’s header to his goalie and toed the ball past Mc Farlane and into the back of the net.

The goal was just what the match needed as the pace of play picked up and the Soca Warriors looking markedly more confident going forward.

In the 40th minute the new-found aplomb paid off when Chris Birchall prodded a ball toward John who controlled, turned and slid a pass into space for the on-rushing Collin Samuel, deployed by Rijsbergen on the left flank, for the Dundee United man to calmly pick his spot to Mc Farlane’s left.

In the 44th minute Panama reminded the T&T team of its defensive responsibilities when Victor Herrera Piggot found himself with yards of space on the left flank and picked out Canales, who braved a challenge on Williams to head in his team’s goal and make it 2-1. The second-half featured a similar enterprising display from the teams with Rijsbergen using subs’ Jason Scotland, on for Jones, and David Atiba Charles, on for Dwayne Jack, to help his team maintain shape.

Meanwhile, on the night, Stern John making his 100th appearance could not get the goal that he so wanted but he at least got a share of the $80,000 which was donated by Dr Iva Gloudon from the Warriors Pride Fund which was collected from members of the public during the World Cup campaign.

T&T:
Jan-Michael Williams; Cyd Gray, Dwayne Jack (Atiba Charles 76th), Dennis Lawrence, Avery John; Carlos Edwards, Christopher Birchall (Nigel Daniel 80th), Trent Noel (Kerry Baptiste 63rd), Collin Samuel; Stern John (capt), Kenwyne Jones (Jason Scotland 71st).

Substitutes not used:
Marvin Phillip, Andrei Pacheco, Andre Tousssaint.

Panama:
1.Oscar McFarlane, 3.Jose Anthony Torres (capt), 4.Luis Henriquez (6.Ubaldo Guardia 56th), 7.Carlos Rivera, 14.Amilcar Henríquez (13.Reggie Arosemena 63rd), 15.Anel Canales, 8.Alberto Blanco, 9.Gabriel Gomez, 12.Victor Piggot (10.Ricardo Phillips 71st), 4.Luis Moreno, 16.Blas Perez, 11.Manuel Torres, 2.Donaldo Gonzalez, Felipe Baloy.

LINEUP
1.Jan-Michael Williams
8.Cyd Gray
4.Subbed outDwayne Jack
 Subbed in 76' David Charles
3.Avery John
6.Dennis Lawrence
7.Subbed outChristopher Birchall
 Subbed in 81' Nigel Daniel
11.Carlos Edwards
9.Subbed outTrent Noel
 Subbed in 63' Kerry Baptiste
14.Stern John
15.Subbed outKenwyne Jones
 Subbed in 72' Jason Scotland
12.Collin Samuel
SUBSTITUTES
2.David Charles
13.Nigel Daniel
18.Kerry Baptiste
20.Jason Scotland
 Andrei Pacheco
 Andre Toussaint
COACH
 Wilhelmus Rijsbergen
SUBSTITUTIONS
63'Subbed outSubbed inKerry Baptiste for Trent Noel
72'Subbed outSubbed inJason Scotland for Kenwyne Jones
76'Subbed outSubbed inDavid Charles for Dwayne Jack
81'Subbed outSubbed inNigel Daniel for Christopher Birchall