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“A bad carpenter blames his tools… Mr [Stephan] DeFour, you should not only apologise to TT WOLF, but its players and clubs, who feed all national programs.”
The following press statement was issued by Women’s League of Football (WOLF) president Susan Joseph-Warrick in response to Women’s National Senior Team head coach Stephan De Four assertion that WOLF is not of the necessary standard to develop players for international duty:
(Copyright Daniel Prentice/CA-Images/Wired868)
TT WOLF wishes to condemn the attack and blame hurled at its organisation by coach Stephan De Four, for the lack of fitness and subpar performance of Trinidad and Tobago National Women’s Team in the recently concluded Olympic Qualifiers held in Trinidad.
A bad carpenter blames his tools. Coach De Four had screening for our local girls since mid-August when he began training the senior ladies, six weeks before the tournament—not 10 days as he would like us to believe. What did he and his staff do to improve the fitness of the girls?
Our League finished on August 24th. He had the girls weeks before that.
Yes, our season was short this [year with just 11 games]. And, yes, it needs to be longer and it will be going forward. But coach De Four needs to take responsibility for the team’s failure and his shortcomings in team preparation, player selection and tactics.
Did he select our Best TT WOLF players? Our top goalscorer, our top goalkeeper; did they feature? Why not? Were they blacklisted?
TT WOLF has and is doing its part to increase the women’s player pool and increase the level of play afforded to our women who go on to our various national teams and universities and colleges abroad.
QPCC won 2-1. (Copyright Allan V Crane/CA-Images/Wired868)
How many TT WOLF games did coach De Four see? Two or three? Who were our best defenders, midfielders and forwards? Mr DeFour, did you invite them [to train] as you did our foreign-based girls?
What about the level of fitness [of the foreign-based players]? Who are you going to blame for their performance or lack thereof?
It appears that none of our national coaches want to shoulder the blame when our teams—men, women and boys—fall short or turn in poor performances. It’s always the players, the schools, the clubs and now TT WOLF at fault.
No, Mr DeFour, look in the mirror. Mr DeFour, you should not only apologise to TT WOLF, but its players and clubs, who feed all national programs. We continue to have the major Women’s Football League in Trinidad and Tobago and possibly the Caribbean [in terms of] developing junior and senior players.
We are doing our part, now you do yours.
(Copyright Daniel Prentice/CA-Images/Wired868)
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Ms Joseph- Warrick …Yes maybe the coach should not have mentioned the WOLF league. Yes, You people are trying to improve depth and quality of women’s football. But you also cannot seriously say that the league is producing players of requisite quality at this time. Possibility in the future but not now.
except that local coaches are notorious for displaying a complete lack of personal responsibility…..dat not new, is never dem fault…..DL is prime example of dat