The full contingent of this country’s National Senior team will assemble at the Radisson Plaza Hotel, San Salvador on Sunday evening and the preparations for Wednesday’s 2010 World Cup Qualifier will go into higher gear over the next 48 hours leading up to kick off at 7pm (9pm T&T time) at the Estadio Cuscatlan on Wednesday.
Saturday’s round of League Matches in England saw T&T’s eight overseas-based pros come through proceedings injury free which was welcomed news for the current team in San Salvador. Skipper Dwight Yorke will lead the incoming bunch into opposition territory at 9pm on Sunday.
Kenwyne Jones continued his scoring form in Sunderland’s 2-0 win over Stoke City while Stern John, Carlos Edwards, and Clayton Ince also got playing time. Silvio Spann was not selected while Dennis Lawrence and Chris Birchall had the day offwith their matches being cancelled due to snow. Yorke did not line up for Sunderland in their 2-0 win.
“The most important thing is that the guys are all coming in healthy and we will have all of them available for the match on Wednesday,” Latapy told TTFF Media.
“It’s one of those things when the slightest injury could make a player miss a match and we don’t have to worry about that for build up to Wednesday’s game. Regarding those guys who didn’t play I think we can be certain that they are all fit and will be able to make the kind of contribution we need from them. ”Francisco Maturana will also arrive on Sunday morning after witnessing El Salvador’s 1-0 win over Peru on Friday night in Los Angeles.
Birchall meantime, says he didn’t have a problem on deciding on risking his starting place in the Brighton first team with duty calling on the other end with T&T. Birchall told the Press in Brighton: “I have got to go, the gaffer understands that. There is no option.
“On the other hand you do think if the team plays well I am going to lose my place but at the end of the day I just want Brighton to win.
“It’s up to the gaffer. Hopefully he will understand and pick me but I can’t be too disappointed if I am left out as soon as I come back.”
“This is the third stage,” he explained. “In the first stage all the Caribbean nations battle it out, then the second stage is where the South American and Central American teams come in.
“There were three groups of four and the top two from each of those go through to what they call a super six. We qualified with the USA from our group and this is the start of the super six now. We play ten games and the top three go through automatically, the fourth into a play-off.
“With the squad we’ve got I think we’ve got a great chance, better than when we qualified last time.
“A lot of the players are English-based. Up front we’ve got Kenwyne Jones, Stern John and Jason Scotland, in midfield Carlos Edwards, me, Dwight Yorke,” Birchall added. The players currently in San Salvador had a outfield workout at a nearby stadium on Friday evening. Other than an earthquake (magnitude 4.5) which shook the Radisson Hotel at 3:45am on Saturday, there’s been little to negatively affect the team’s build up here to date. Guatemalan Henry Morales has also been brought on board to serve as security officer for the T&T team during its stay for Wednesday’s encounter.
And though anxious to get up close footage and anything else of the players at yesterday’s training session, the local mediamen on sight were cooperative with the requests of the T&T management/media personnel. They soon dispersed once a few quotes was offered to them on camera. It could be a different story from Monday as the hours tick away towards Wednesday’s kick off.
“We’ll be okay anyways… We’re not strangers to these sort of atmospheres. We are here for football and in football you prepare yourself for anything that comes your way,” Latapy assured.
TTFF Special Advisor Jack Warner will also have as his guest in El Salvador President of the Republic His Excellency George Maxwell Richards as well other distinguished guests for Wednesday’s affair. A charter flight will also bring a band of local fans to support the “Soca Warriors” in what is definitely going to be a hostile atmosphere of close to 40,000 plus fans.