SOCA Warriors head coach Angus Eve has announced a 26-man roster for this weekend’s two practice matches against Jamaica at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo on March 1 (3pm) and Larry Gomes Stadium in Malabar on March 3 (4pm).
Among them are two new foreign-based recruits – Canadian League One midfielder Kai Garvey (Simcoe County Rovers FC) and English League Two forward Justin Obikwu (Coventry City).
Joining them are Jamaica-based forward Nathaniel James and midfielder Kaile Auvray (both of Mount Pleasant) and defender Josiah Trimmingham (Montego Bay Utd).
Also breaking into the senior team was in-form Under-20 forward Michael Chaves (QPCC), who concluded his U20 Concacaf Championship campaign on Tuesday.
Uncapped players such as Shervohnez Hamilton (Club Sando), Rhondel Gibson (Eagles FC), Liam Burns (AC Port of Spain) and Kai Moos (Club Sando) were also selected.
The remaining players all hail from the Trinidad and Tobago Premier Football League (TTPFL) tier one and includes regulars such as Duane Muckette, John-Paul Rochford, Nathaniel Garcia, Michel Poon Angeron, Denzil Smith and Christopher Bigette among others.
On the composition of his squad, Eve was pleased to welcome some new faces to the setup, having recently lost out on winger Reon Moore (Pacific FC/Canada) and forward Real Gill (Northern Colorado Hailstorm/USA), who both attained contracts abroad.
He also rued recent injuries to several TTPFL players such as AC Port of Spain’s Isaiah Leacock and Terminix La Horquetta Rangers’ Isaiah Lee and Daniel David.
Eve also confirmed he planned to include U20 stars Lindel Sween and Rio Cardines in the roster but the former picked up an injury during the Concacaf Championships while Cardines had returned to English club Crystal Palace, on Wednesday.
On the composition of the squad, Eve said, “We had a mini camp over the Carnival period where we saw some new players and we wanted to see them in a real match environment, and now this is an opportunity for them to get proper match practice so we could see them play.
“We have some new players. Unfortunately, some of them got injured in the last couple games in the TTPFL matches so they’re not here right now”.
The new recruits, he said, will use this weekend’s matches as a good opportunity to stake a claim going into the Copa America playoff.
T&T play Canada in a one-match playoff on March 23 at the Toyota Stadium in Texas, USA, where the winner advances to the Copa America Group A, alongside FIFA World Cup champions Argentina, two-time champions Peru and Chile.
Eve was pleased that his talent pool continues to grow as they gear up for the crucial Canada clash. He also thanked former national coaches Dennis Lawrence and Stephen Hart for being the catalyst in him bringing on Obikwu and Garvey respectively.
“When these types of coaches recommend people you must take a look at them. We’ve seen tapes of them and this is our opportunity to see them live,” he added.
Additionally, the availability of the Jamaican-based trio came after their league postponed matches for a period.
For Friday’s match, no fans will be allowed to view the match due to a setup being done at the venue for Carifta trials this weekend. However, spectators can view Sunday’s match at Larry Gomes Stadium at a cost of $50.
T&T Squad
Goalkeepers – Denzil Smith (Club Sando), Adrian Foncette (Police FC), Christopher Biggette (Defence Force)
Defenders – Alvin Jones (Police FC), Jamal Jack (Club Sando), Justin Garcia (Defence Force), Robert Primus (Police FC), Josiah Trimmingham (Montego Bay FC), Shervohnez Hamilton (Club Sando), Ross Russell Jr (La Horquetta Rangers)
Midfielders – Duane Muckette (AC PoS), John-Paul Rochford (ACPoS), Justin Sadoo (Defence Force), Kaile Auvrau (Mount Pleasant), Kai Moos (Club Sando), Kevon Goddard (Defence Force), Liam Burns (AC PoS), Nathaniel Garcia (Defence Force), Michel Poon Angeron (AC PoS), Kai Garvey (Simcoe County Rovers), Rhondel Gibson (Club Sando), Kaihim Thomas (Defence Force)
Forwards – Nathaniel James (Mount Pleasant), Jem Gordon (1976 Phoenix FC), Justin Obikwu (Coventry City), Michael Chaves (QPCC)
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Eve to try different Warriors line-up for 2nd Reggae Boyz friendly.
By Jonathan Ramnanansingh (T&T Newsday).
Trinidad and Tobago’s senior men’s football team have another go at the Reggae Boyz, for the second time in three days, in a friendly contest at Larry Gomes Stadium in Malabar on Sunday, from 4pm.
The Angus Eve-coached T&T squad hope to fare better this time around having lost the opening match 1-0 at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo on Friday.
Both matches are being used as preparation for T&T’s single-game playoff against Canada, on March 23 at the Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas. The winner advances to this year’s Copa America tournament and will be grouped alongside FIFA World Cup winner Argentina and two-time Copa champions Chile and Peru.
So far, no other official practice match is scheduled for T&T ahead of the playoff.
In Friday’s friendly, which comprised mostly locally-based players from T&T, five foreign-based youngsters and five senior team debutants, a 58th minute goal from Jamaican teenager Kahiem Dixon separated the two at the final whistle.
Despite expressing satisfaction with the team’s first performance, in the post-match press conference on Friday, Eve said a different line-up will be used for the second match.
Eve’s men comprised mainly of TT Premier Football league tier one players, three Jamaica-based players – Nathaniel James, Kaile Auvray and Josiah Trimmingham – and two new foreign-based recruits, Canadian League One midfielder Kai Garvey (Simcoe County Rovers FC) and English League Two forward Justin Obikwu (Coventry City).
Also getting a run for the first time was Under-20 forward Michael Chaves (QPCC), Shervohnez Hamilton (Club Sando), Rhondel Gibson (Eagles FC), Liam Burns (AC Port of Spain) and Kai Moos (Club Sando).
Garvey, on debut for T&T, said, “It felt like a dream come through, walking out the stadium into the grass, I couldn’t stop smiling thinking about my family watching me. It’s a lot of hours to get an opportunity like this so I just thank God.”
“I feel as though we really did well in the first half. It’s a fight in this climate and weather. We had plenty of chances, unfortunately we didn’t put them away and in the second half we paid the price. But we move on to the next game. I love the fight of the players. It’s a very big community here.”
Unlike the first match, which was a closed-door affair, Sunday's outing is open to the public with a $50 admission fee.
T&T’s 26-man squad
Goalkeepers – Denzil Smith (Club Sando), Adrian Foncette (Police FC), Christopher Biggette (Defence Force)
Defenders – Alvin Jones (Police FC), Jamal Jack (Club Sando), Justin Garcia (Defence Force), Robert Primus (Police FC), Josiah Trimmingham (Montego Bay FC), Shervohnez Hamilton (Club Sando), Ross Russell Jr (La Horquetta Rangers)
Midfielders – Duane Muckette (AC PoS), John-Paul Rochford (ACPoS), Justin Sadoo (Defence Force), Kaile Auvrau (Mount Pleasant), Kai Moos (Club Sando), Kevon Goddard (Defence Force), Liam Burns (AC PoS), Nathaniel Garcia (Defence Force), Michel Poon Angeron (AC PoS), Kai Garvey (Simcoe County Rovers), Rhondel Gibson (Club Sando), Kaihim Thomas (Defence Force)
Forwards – Nathaniel James (Mount Pleasant), Jem Gordon (1976 Phoenix FC), Justin Obikwu (Coventry City), Michael Chaves (QPCC).