Home »

[bana2166]

Trinidad Under-21s must beat Haitians

2006-04-04 02:40 (updated 2006-04-04 09:00)

TRINIDAD and Tobago?s Under-21 football team captain Makan Hislop believes that they can stage a reversal and defeat Haiti today and clinch a qualifying spot in the Central American and Caribbean Games.

The Under-21s put on a dismal performance on Friday before scoring a last minute equaliser against Dominica in the opening match of the three-team qualifiers at the Marvin Lee Stadium at the Centre of Excellence, Macoya.

Their must win situation today at the Larry Gomes Stadium was occasioned by Haiti?s 5-0 drubbing of Dominica on Sunday.

Hislop and his teammates were in the stands as Haitians, who arrived the day before, comfortably trounced the Dominicans.

?We know that Friday?s performance was not anywhere close to our best so we are expecting to come out and do a lot better,? Hislop said on Sunday. ?This is a do or die for us.?

?Part of the problem I think though was everyone expected us to win the match and as a result we all also expected to win the game and we didn?t play good enough to get the result. We were too confident and we didn?t work hard enough,? said the Tobago-born US-based player.

For the first time, an Under-21 team has picked more than five overseas-based players ? eight in total ? which Hislop said can have a positive effect on the team?s overall readiness.

?I have been very surprised because within our team we haven?t had any problems between the local players and the ones from abroad. Quite a few of the foreign-based players on this team were also based locally up to two years ago so we know each other and we can relate well with each other,? Hislop said.

?When most of us came back, there was no negative vibes and I think this can continue in the future. I think too that there shouldn?t be much problems with players who go abroad and have fears of being forgotten about when it comes to the national team or local football on a whole,? he said.

?In the past we have had times when no one contacted them and they may have been lost to national football. But now this is changing and more are playing with the national team.

?It was great for us to have the camps since before December and the chance being given for players to come and be part of the training,? Hislop said. ?This shows that the Federation and management are thinking about the future and that they are putting things in place for the overseas players will not be lost out there,? Hislop said. Teammate Carlon Murray, the defender who patterns his game after Glasgow Rangers? Marvin Andrews said that the Young Warriors will be going all out for victory today.

?I think we have realised what went wrong with our game on Friday and it really is about getting our confidence again,? he said.