Trinidad and Tobago captain Dwight Yorke wants to hold direct talks with Prime Minster Patrick Manning to discuss incentives for the T&T Soca Warriors for qualifying for the 2006 World Cup Finals in Germany.
That was one of the announcements made yesterday at a Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs news conference where Sport Minister Roger Boynes said Cabinet had approved $45 million in assistance to the national team as they prepare for their first World Cup appearance.
Government assistance covers the period September 2005 to June 2006 and includes bonuses for the players and technical staff and the cost of training camps in Manchester, England and Austria prior to the World Cup, which kicks off June 9.
That period will see the Soca Warriors fine-tuning with warm-up matches against Peru, Austria Wien club team, Wales, Slovenia and the Czech Republic.
Boynes announced that the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (T&TFF) had submitted a $79,251,859 budget to his Ministry, of which the Government will be the main contributor.
The deficit will be met by $31,958,092.21 in revenue which the T&TFF expect to recoup from the World Cup and just over $3 million which will be sourced from the Trinidad and Tobago business community.
The Sport Minister said it was Government's intention to fully support the Soca Warriors' efforts to "shock the world" in Germany.
In addition, he said local football will also benefit from Government assistance this year.
The T&T Pro League stands to gain $3 million per year; the T&TFF's football development programme another $16 million; and $2 million will go to community football.
"The Government of Trinidad and Tobago is committed to supporting the development of sport at all levels as articulated in the National Sports Policy of Trinidad and Tobago," stated Boynes.
He also disclosed that personal compensation for the players for qualifying for the 2006 World Cup was a separate issue which will be addressed when Yorke meets PM Manning.
Yorke is due home for the May 10 warm-up match against Peru.
Just prior to the February 28 game against Iceland in London, Boynes had asked Soca Warriors team manager Bruce Aanensen to enquire from the players what they wanted.
Yesterday, the Minister reported he was informed that Yorke had made a request to be allowed to speak directly to the Prime Minister on the issue.
MEASURES APPROVED BY CABINET:
(1) Reimburse $745,225.54 representing customs duties ($392,024.38) and value added tax (VAT) ($353,201.02) for the importation of gear, uniforms and tokens from June 14-November 9, 2005.
2) Remission of $500,000 representing customs duties and VAT for the importation of gear, uniforms and tokens for the May 10, 2006 friendly against Peru.
(3) Financial assistance of $16,169,069.70 to meet the cost of qualification bonus for the technical staff ($5,509,350) and players ($10,658,719.70) for the period September-December, 2005.
(4) World Cup bonus to a maximum of $6,463,800 to meet the cost of bonuses for technical staff ($2,116,800) and players ($4,347,000) for the first round participation at the World Cup.
(5) Performance incentive payment in the sum of $15,372,000 to meet the cost of second round participation bonuses to the technical staff ($6,678,000) and players ($8,694,000).