“[…] We have a national senior men’s soccer team funded by Fifa, the government (my tax dollars), and private donors that pays for radio announcers’ travel and lodging to cover their games on a radio station that broadcasts those games and sells advertising. “This scenario raises important questions about media independence, conflict of interest, and …
Read More »Dear Editor: TTFA is setting up Women Soca Warriors to be humiliated
“[…] The Women Soca Warriors are going to get pummelled because we deliberately chose to ignore their programme. “It seems to me that we are a culture that likes to see women being humiliated. We will invest heavily in men’s sports, especially football, but will neglect our women and make …
Read More »“It’s as if we don’t exist!” T&T women’s star slams TTFA, as W/Warriors dormant after 18 mths
“[…] Our Senior Women’s National team also have World Cup hopes—yet we are being neglected. We are near the middle of June are basically in July. Yet we have: no head coach; no friendlies; no local pool in training. “Is as if we don’t exist…” Trinidad and Tobago Women’s National …
Read More »Sealy gets debut double, as T&T trounce St Kitts and Nevis 6-2 before sell-out crowd
A double from debutante Dante Sealy, a goal on return from Levi Garcia and another from veteran Kevin Molino, and a sell-out crowd at the Hasely Crawford Stadium. There was plenty to please Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) president Kieron Edwards and, more importantly, football fans in red, white …
Read More »Dear Editor: Caribbean FAs, like TTFA, can never get sustained success from Fifa grants
“[…] Dependency on global and regional football authorities, and government funds disempowers football leaders in these associations. Leaders often find themselves constrained by the conditions attached to grants or by the pressure to align with donor priorities rather than focusing on their country’s specific football needs. “[…] This dynamic can …
Read More »Dear Editor: T&T owes it to our talented youth to rebuild our football programme
“[…] As coach Dwight Yorke noted following the Unity Cup, many of our local-based players are not yet ready for international-level competition. But this isn’t their fault. It is the result of a system that no longer provides the structure or support to develop top-level players here at home. “The …
Read More »Dear Editor: Mulraine is right; TTFA must invest in talent identification
“[…] Instead of relying on one-off screening sessions, the TTFA should establish a structured scouting network that monitors players across various competitions such as the Republic Bank National Youth Football League, the All-Star Showcase, and the City Cup. “Trained scouts would track players over the course of a season, evaluating …
Read More »Mulraine: Screening sessions to select national youth teams is lazy, inefficient and outdated
“[…] Anyone who has gone through this process knows the folly of trying to select the ‘best’ 20 players out of 100s of young footballers who will turn up. Sometimes a gem has a bad day. Sometimes he is placed on a team with only strange faces and he hardly …
Read More »Dear Editor: TTFA miscommunication denied East U-15 boys of national shot
“[…] Two days ago, it came to my attention, via the TTFA Facebook page, that screening for U15 boys were to be conducted for Mayaro and the North Zone on 17 and 18 May. “This news piqued my interest and I began enquiring through the ‘grapevine’, on when the East …
Read More »“A young soul taken far too soon”; TTFA mourns murdered school footballer, Zwade Alleyne
“[…] Zwade Alleyne’s passing follows a senseless act of violence that has left us all grieving, outraged, and searching for answers… We mourn the loss of a young soul taken far too soon…” The following press statement on the death of 17-year-old Arima North Secondary student Zwade Alleyne was submitted …
Read More »“Ridiculous to say we’re weaponising safeguarding!” St Rose on Cooper, NLCL suspensions
Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) Safeguarding manager Gary St Rose has defended the integrity of the local body’s operation and denied that the function designed for the welfare of minors has been weaponised. The Safeguarding unit was criticised last November for its decision to suspend the NLCL Under-19 Community …
Read More »Dear Editor: T&T football is dying—and we’re losing more than just games
“[…] You’d be lucky to find five kids who can name five national players they admire. The conversations have vanished. The excitement, the pride, the obsession—all but erased. “We’ve lost more than talent. We’ve lost culture. Identity. Connection… We’ve allowed football to become hollow, run by people who don’t feel …
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