2008 is an exciting year for the Warrior Nation and Trinidad and Tobago football on the whole! On the heels of our momentous performance in the 2006 World Cup, qualification matches for the 2010 World Cup are soon approaching and the mouthwatering anticipation of witnessing our Soca Warriors come up against the best in CONCACAF is frantically building. With a new coach at the helm, new players to bolster the previous World Cup squad and a few creditable performances against CONCACAF rivals this year, the prospect of recapturing the glory of 2006 is on the minds of all T&T football fans. In light of this, the Warrior Nation has embarked on yet another groundbreaking project that is sure to be of interest to all stakeholders of T&T football. Enter---The Warrior Nation Team of the Week (TOTW). TOTW is basically a simulation selection of the T&T men’s national team displayed in a unique and colorful illustration. Each week the spotlight will be placed on T&T football’s peak performers as they excel at their respective professional football clubs.
Eligible Leagues: T&T footballers ply their trade at professional clubs all over the globe. As such, TOTW candidates will be chosen from over 12 professional leagues that feature T&T footballers. These teams are as follow – The T&T Pro League, the English Premier League, the Dutch Eredivisie, Major League Soccer, the United Soccer League - Division 1, English Football League (Championship, League's One and Two), the Scottish Premier League, Scottish Football League (Division 1 and 2), Belgium Third Division, French Championnat National and the Lebanese Premier League.
Selection Process: The TOTW comprises of 11 players, a goal keeper and a variation in formation of the 10 other players including defenders, midfielders and strikers. The selection of players will be based on a professional league point system. Points are allocated as follow:
| Event | Forward | Midfielder | Defender | Goalkeeper |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minutes played (>60) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Minutes played (<60) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Goal | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
| Assist | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Clean sheet | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
| Every 2 goals conceded | 0 | 0 | -1 | -1 |
| Every 3 shots saved | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Penalty save | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Penalty miss | -2 | -2 | -2 | -2 |
| Yellow card | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
| Red card | -3 | -3 | -3 | -3 |
| Man of the match | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Each professional club that a T&T footballer plays for is assigned to a specific tier (see below). In order to ensure a fair and balanced calculation of points earned in these leagues, the aforementioned points are then weighted using the following multiplication factors: Tier 1 = 2, Tier 2 = 1.75, Tier 3 = 1.5, Tier 4 = 1.25, Tier 5 = 1
Professional League Tier Breakdown
First Tier:
English Premier League / Dutch Eredivisie
Second Tier:
Scottish Premier League / English League Championship
Third Tier:
Major League Soccer / English League One
Fourth Tier:
T&T Pro League / English League Two / Lebanese Premier League / Scottish Division Two
Fifth Tier:
French Championnat National / Belgium Third Division / United Soccer Leagues
The Game Week: The TOTW game week is scheduled from Tuesday to Monday. Postings of the TOTW will be made every Tuesday following each game week.
TOTW Production Team: Robert “e-man” Engelmann, Fédon “Midknight” Honoré, Anthony “FireBrand” Valley and Nigel “Tallman” Myers.
Join us every Tuesday at thewarriornation.com and experience the Warrior Nation Team of the Week series!