CLUB SANDO will boast familiar faces when the club debut in the TT Pro League this season – the 2015-16 calendar which kicks off later this month.
Now entering the Pro League – the nation’s top tier of football – Streete has retained the services of goalkeeper Alexi Julian (the 2014-15 Super League Most Valuable Player), and second choice goalie Derron Millard along with defenders Devon Drayton, Kern Cupid, Kemuel Rivers and Anthony Parris.
In midfield, Ryan Frederick, Jack Weedon and Trinidad and Tobago Under-20 player Akeem Humphrey will continue to serve Sando, while the forwards consist of Kevon Woodley, Teba Mc Knight, Jesse Downing, Kevon Neaves, Kerron Mitchell and Keith Williams, the younger brother of Central FC and Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper Jan-Michael Williams.
“I’ve kept these guys to give them the opportunity because they paid their dues in getting us here (at the Pro League level),” said Streete, the former St Ann’s Rangers coach. “The players that I’ve kept, showed that they have what it takes for physical training in getting to the required level for the step up to the Pro League.” Streete, who kicked off pre-season training on June 16, said his team’s present readiness stands at around 80 percent. He also warned that, by no means Club Sando will be a pushover for any club in the Pro League, including top sides Central FC and W Connection, last season’s Digicel Pro League winners and runners-up, respectively.
Defender Corneal Thomas and forward/midfielder Devon Modeste have re-joined Club Sando following last season’s stints at San Juan Jabloteh and Rangers, respectively. Streete’s newcomers include midfielders Jeromie Williams, a 26-year-old former TT Under-23 and North East Stars player; 25-year-old United States-born Anthony De La Rosa; 24-year-old former North East Stars and Jabloteh player Shane Hospedales; 23-year-old Dwayne Ellis, and 20-year-old Jared London.
Other new talents include ex-Naparima Boys College captain and defender, 20-year-old Amritt Gildharry; 21-year-old former TT Under-20 and Carapichaima East Secondary forward Shaquille Holder; and 22-yearold goalkeeper Kelvin Henry, formerly of Palo Seco FC.
“We would have liked to add a few more players, some local and a couple from outside of Trinidad, but our budget doesn’t allow it,” explained Streete.
“We are now entering the Pro League and it would be very ambitious to say we want to win the league over more seasoned teams,” said Club Sando owner Edison “Eddie” Dean. “Realistically, we want to finish as high as possible and will settle for anywhere above mid-table. But surely we are not here to finish at the bottom.”