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The Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) will stream this afternoon’s friendly between the Trinidad and Tobago Women’s National Senior Team and their Panamanian counterparts live from 3.30pm on its Facebook page.
The Women Soca Warriors face Panama at the Ato Boldon Stadium in Couva but the game is not open to the public owing to concerns about the Covid-19 pandemic.
(via TTFA Media)
The fixture marks Trinidad and Tobago’s first international football match on home soil since 8 October 2019 when the Women Warriors, then led by coach Stephan De Four, had to be content with a goalless draw against Dominica.
The Dominica result completed a humiliating early exit from their Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games campaign, as they finished third in their Caribbean group—despite home advantage. Today, the Women Warriors are preparing for the 2022 Concacaf W Championship that will determine places for the 2023 Women’s World Cup and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
It also marks a debut as head coach for 37-year-old former Trinidad and Tobago captain Kenwyne Jones.
Jones said the job was offered to him by the Fifa-appointed normalisation committee, after two foreign coaches—Welshman James Thomas and American Constantine Konstin—quit the post under differing circumstances within the space of two weeks.
(via TTFA Media)
Unified Football Coaches of Trinidad and Tobago (UFCTT) president Jefferson George said he remains unhappy with the haphazard selections made by the Robert Hadad-led normalisation committee. However, he stressed his group’s desire for Jones to succeed on the job.
“We continue to ask for a proper selection process to be done, and you can use any of our previous statements on the topic as it is the same thing again,” George told Wired868. “This is a short-term appointment and we wish Kenwyne all the best in his stint. It is going to be difficult, not just because of his experience but his limited time to get anything done before he is examined in his first game.
“I hope he does well because it will give another glimpse on behalf of the local coaches, so the normalisation committee might have more confidence in appointing local coaches.
“Angus [Eve] essentially picked himself because his team’s performances at the Gold Cup made it almost impossible not to select him. But other than that, they seem bent on selecting persons who are not locals.”
(Copyright Allan V Crane/CA-images/Wired868)
The normalisation committee said it will make a long-term appointment for the post in November and George urged Hadad to follow the constitution and activate a technical committee.
“We need a technical committee,” said George. “They cannot do the technical side of the job—they have showed that already with appointments like the Futsal man (Konstin).”
The Trinidad and Tobago Women’s National Senior Team squad:
Kimika Forbes (Unattached), Tenesha Palmer (Unattached), Malaika Dedier (St Augustine FC), Collette Morgan (UTT FC), Rhea Belgrave (Police FC), Naomie Guerra (Unattached), Liana Hinds (IBV—Iceland), Jonelle Cato (Trincity Nationals), Meyah Romeo (Unattached), Anya DeCourcy (Roa W—Norway), Karyn Forbes (Unattached), Maylee Attin-Johnson (Atlanta Panthers—USA), Lauryn Hutchinson (Unattached), Maya Matouk (Police FC), Aaliyah Prince (St Augustine FC), Dennecia Prince (Unattached), Laurelle Theodore (St Augustine FC), Victoria Swift (Club Leon—Mexico), Raenah Campbell (Avantes Chalkida WFC—Greece), Kennya Cordner (Il Sandviken—Norway), Chelcy Ralph (Unattached), Adrianna Arjoon (Unattached), Janelle McGee (Sacramento FC—USA).
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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.
