NATIONAL FOOTBALL team coach Stephen Hart is expected to name his squad today for two upcoming qualifiers for both the 2017 Caribbean Cup finals and the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Trinidad and Tobago will play the Dominican Republic at the Ato Boldon Stadium, before facing Martinique away at Stade Pierre-Aliker in Fort-de-France. The group winner advance to both the Caribbean final and Gold Cup.
However, Hart has revealed there was some difficult in assembling the overseas-based members of his unit.
Officially, the dates for the FIFA international window, in which countries can demand its players for internationals and friendly matches, is November 7-15. But T&T’s first match date is November 5, and those clubs willing to release players won’t do so until Wednesday, November 2.
“Clubs are saying that it is not the FIFA date. So we have to balance things and we had some hiccups along the way,” the coach explained.
“We have some difficulty because as you know, it is a FIFA window, but where they put the playing days is November 5 and November 11,” said Hart.
Meanwhile, Hart came in for high praise for his work with the national team from both the TTFA president David John-Williams and NLCB acting director Ricardo Brooks, when the parties announced a sponsorship deal yesterday.
At the launch, John-Williams recognised Hart’s contribution by making the TTFA marketable once again with on-the-field successes, which included reaching the quarter-finals of the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and in 2016, reaching the final stage of CONCACAF qualifying for the Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup.
“Mister Stephen Hart, head-coach of our national senior team, whose result against Guatemala has propelled this programme and brought this programme to reality,” John-Williams said.
Brooks added: “First, I want to say congratulations to our senior men. “Mister Stephen Hart is doing a good job and he has the respect of us and Trinidad and Tobago.”