Warriors’ Week in Review

It’s been a busy week for the Warriors, and not just in epigrammatic terms. Here’s a précis of what they’ve been up to over the past 7 days.

Worldwide Vibes – I’ve said before that T&T fans are the best in the world. More than ever, our devotion seems to be spreading overseas. The Tartan Army had already joined the ranks of the Warrior Nation, and the Wümme-Jumbies of Rotenburg love us so much that they’ve changed their town sign to read “Soca Village.” The Welsh refuse to be outdone – Wrexham AFC, of which hero Warrior Dennis “Tallest” Lawrence is captain, is doing a brisk trade in Lawrence replica t-shirts and T&T wristbands and flags. I wonder how many Welsh fans will still be rallying behind the Warriors on May 27th, when we play Wales in a friendly in Austria? Hmm.

Wounded Warriors – England isn’t the only team in Group B with injury worries. Cornell Glen’s hamstring injury is sufficiently serious to have ruled him out of our May 10th friendly against Peru, and Beenie will soon be announcing whether Glen will be kept in the provisional 24-man squad. Although Beenie originally maintained that he’d be sticking to the 24, whatever the outcome of our various friendlies, it seems that he’s been rethinking his selection. I’ll be commenting on this further this week.

Political Football – This week the President of T&T, Maxwell Richards, hailed the Soca Warriors, saying: “I am certain that our team will represent us well and do us proud. Indeed, I am looking forward to a few upsets in Germany.” This is the kind of political support that we need – not the shilly-shallying in which the executive arm of the government seems to love to engage (aside from its perpetual feuding with Jack Warner, of course).

Laters, Latas – Russell “Little Magician” Latapy has formally announced his retirement from international football, after hinting as much back in March. Given that Latapy is based with Falkirk FC in Scotland, our May 10th encounter with Peru will be his last appearance for the national team on local soil. To be fair, this is Latas’ second retirement from the international game. He – like Dwight Yorke – was persuaded to come out of retirement by Bertille St. Clair, the previous T&T coach. (Thank you, Bertille!). Latas won’t be bidding farewell to Trinidad forever though, saying: “I don’t think this is the end, but the beginning of something new. And…I know the coach is not ready to leave yet, but, hopefully, I can work in another capacity and continue to represent Trinidad and bring the experience that I have gained to the football.” Interesting. If Beenie decides not to stay on after Germany (and what a great shame that would be), might Latas be up to the job? Whatever happens, it’s an exciting times for T&T football.

Media Frenzy – It’s not just our Group B rivals who will be watching the Warriors when they take to the pitch for the Peru friendly three days from now. A team of fifty foreign journalists will be reporting from Port of Spain, the T&T capital and home of the Haseley Crawford Stadium, where the game will be held. The press delegation includes representatives of the French daily Le Monde (not usually known for its football coverage, so this is interesting), and a gaggle of English journalists, including reporters for BBC (TV and Radio), Sky Sports, ITV, and the Sunday Telegraph newspaper. Sweden, the Netherland, Japan, Peru, China and even Iran will also be represented. Live game news will be carried on eBay, one of our official sponsors. In addition to what ought to be an exciting football match, the (international) viewing and audience will be treated to a cultural show featuring a few of Trinidad’s enomously talented local musicians. Very exciting. Vibes it up T&T – the world is watching.

Going Brave – South Korean Ohmynews.com has just published a profile of the T&T team, just one of the many that my trusty GoogleAlerts deliver daily to my inbox. We’re described as a “small, brave nation” (I can’t think of any cowardly nations off the top of my head…) up against “an England team with injury problems and the ageing Paraguay and Sweden teams,” these latter being offered as potential justifications for the “optimism” of T&T fans. I quite enjoy reading these articles; it’s interesting to see T&T as we’re viewed by the “outside world”. Which makes the massive media attention we’re attracting even more interesting. What will the coverage be like? What will it focus on? If any of my dear readers happen to speak Swedish, Japanese, Spanish, Chinese or Farsi (Afshin?) and would be interesting in helping me compile a revue de presse over the coming weeks, just leave me a comment.

Till we meet again – vibes it up.