… Honduras summons starlets
Trinidad and Tobago national under-23 striker Jamal Gay continued his scoring form with two goals on Sunday evening as the 2012 London Olympic hopefuls started their Fort Lauderdale pre-tournament camp with a 4-1 over top South Florida amateur club, Honduras 5 Stars.
Honduras 5 Stars opened the scoring after just 10 minutes but Micah Lewis equalised in the 24th minute before Gay put the visitors ahead with a double in the 39th and 57th minutes. Cameron Roget closed the score summary with a strike in the 82nd minute.

Lewis and Gay both represent local Pro League team, Caledonia AIA, while Roget is a St Ann’s Rangers player.
The result was an immediate response to a 2-1 loss to Jamaica Premier Division club, Portmore United, on Friday. Trevin Caesar, another Caledonia player with a nose for goal, scored the lone item in that defeat.
National under-23 team coach Angus Eve said his team has settled in well at the Sheraton Suites, Cyprus Creek, Fort Lauderdale and is looking forward to its final warm-up matches, which includes a fixture against the Canada Under-23s on Friday.
Eve described their Jamaican trip as a beneficial exercise and expressed satisfaction with the team’s preparation.
“Generally everyone is in good spirits,” Eve told the TTFF Media. “We have no injury concerns. The facility is up to scratch and we will try to maximize all our opportunities as it relates to the preparation of the team for the next few days before we head to Los Angeles for the tournament.”
Although Sunday’s match-up with Honduras 5 Star was a straightforward affair, the young “Soca Warriors” should be under no such illusions regarding their final group stage match against the Honduras Under-23 team, which is seeking a second successive Olympic finals berth.
The Honduran youth team, which faces T&T on March 27, declared that its ranks would be strengthened too by the additions of three overseas-based starlets. Eighteen-year-old DC United winger Andy Najar was named the MLS Rookie of the Year in 2010 and has already made his senior team debut while strikers Anthony Lozano and Eddie Hernandez play in Spain and Sweden respectively.
Eve was unable to secure the release of Racing Genk midfielder Khaleem Hyland for the competition but will have the services of Poland-based defender Mekeil Williams (Pogon Szczecin) and the United States-based midfield trio of Kevin Molino (Orlando City), Kevan George (Columbus Crew) and Sean De Silva (College of Charleston).
W. Connection striker Shahdon Winchester, who recently returned from a stint in Vietnam and is in negotiations for a fresh move overseas, should also join Eve’s troops by March 17.
Eve and assistant coach Derek King both also took time to pay respects to recently deceased national physiotherapist David Cumberbatch who passed away on Sunday.

Lasana Liburd is the managing director and chief editor at Wired868.com and a journalist with over 20 years experience at several Trinidad and Tobago and international publications including Play the Game, World Soccer, UK Guardian and the Trinidad Express.