“[…] Black Stalin was a standard bearer of Carnival traditions whose work spans from pre-independence to the present. In the 1950s, Stalin began as a limbo dancer, then later devoted the next 60 years of his career to developing the Calypso art form…” The following statement on the death of …
Read More »Berry: Hadad’s unsuitability is T&T football’s biggest problem, not identity of next TTFA president
“[…] Robert Hadad has spent more than two and a half years plodding along whilst receiving a nice monthly sum from Fifa, for achieving what? “[…] By March 2023, he will have personally been paid about US$220,000 (TT$1.49m) and you can more than double that for his cronies—while creditors have …
Read More »Dear Editor: Now TTFA’s members know who they climbed in bed with, after accepting “normalisation”
“[…] It is sadly laughable that those who now demand democratic elections on 18 March have never demanded that Fifa or its Normalisation Committee respect TTFA democracy. “[…] They never engaged the broad membership in any discussion regarding a way forward for Trini football. Their ‘governance model’ doesn’t allow for …
Read More »Orin: Sports, politics and bandwagons; the 2022 W/Cup was pregnant with resonance
“[…] North versus south, developed versus developing, small versus big, rich versus poor, colonists versus colonised. Matches were pregnant with meaning and resonance outside of football. “[…] The World Cup, Olympics and sports in general are proxies for fights over politics, history and geographical hegemony… Caribbean people in the UK …
Read More »Qatar 2022: Hart on Mbappé vs Messi and the tactical options open to France and Argentina
“[…] Kylian Mbappé has shown that he can beat almost every player for pace, but to say that is all he possesses would be an insult. He has shown he is not only able to elude his opponent on the inside and outside, but in tight spaces—as he demonstrated against Morocco—where his …
Read More »Qatar 2022: Hart looks beyond W/Cup drama to “cookie cutter” players and absent national identity
“[…] Perhaps I just long for the era that made me fall in love with the game—when national teams had distinct styles, based largely on the imagination and improvisation of their players. It has been, despite all that I have said, an enjoyable World Cup. “However, when I hear people marvel at an outside …
Read More »Dear Editor: TTFA Members put Fifa on the spot with EGM motion—will they have balls to stand firm?
“[…] The TTFA EGM adopted an amended motion that called on Fifa to end its control in March 2023 and to return TTFA to its membership, with a proposed election to be held on 18 March. “This is the most important development in local football in three years. And look …
Read More »Qatar 2022: Hart on Brazil and England’s elimination, Messi and Moroccan spoilers
“[…] Brazil’s substitutions were difficult to understand. Against Croatia’s compact block, surely the penetration of Gabriel Martinelli could have been an option. I also struggled with the question as to the role of Pedro. “[…] Argentina can be best described as pragmatic. In reality, they are a team based on …
Read More »Qatar 2022: Hart on relentless France, VAR and media hypocrisy
“[…] What is noticeable is that repeated sprinting power is now a priority, with most players and teams are willing to run… France, Senegal and Japan are mobile and relentless—with France, in particular, suffocating their opposition’s midfield very effectively. “[…] VAR, in my humble opinion, is killing the essence and …
Read More »Dear Editor: Play Whe is emblematic of Trini superstition—and it could be a bonding exercise
“[…] My father used to religiously record the Play Whe results until my inquisitiveness caused him to give way, and he reassigned the task to me. It was a good bonding opportunity for us, and I became his diligent understudy, scribe, and good luck charm. “[…] To my delight, he …
Read More »Orin: The good, bad and the ugly of the 2022 World Cup
“[…] I told someone who knows Radanfah Abu Bakr that I liked the former T&T defender’s analysis. He replied: ‘Radanfah understands that less is more.’ “[…] CNC3 […] has had good moments, but overall coverage hasn’t been good enough. Things got off to an unpromising start when analyst Jan-Michael Williams …
Read More »“It’s past time it was held in Arab world!” Putting the “world” in the World Cup
“[…] It gets baking hot in Qatar, folks. Deal with it. The next tournament will be jointly hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada. Have you ever been to New York in July? “We have to put the ‘world’ in the World Cup, and it’s past time that it was …
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