Retaining the Digicel Pro League title isn't the only ambition of Defence Force for the 2013-2014 season according to the soldiers' Head Coach Ross Russell.
But the Tetron-based soldiers will kick things off without ace forward and last season’s top scorer Devorn Jorsling, beginning with a revenge clash of the Digicel Charity Shield on Friday 6 September against DIRECTV W Connection from 7pm at the Hasely Crawford Stadium.
The Charity Shield brings together the League champions (Defence Force) and the Digicel Pro Bowl winners (W Connection) of the previous season. And in the inaugural edition, last season, both teams met with Connection finishing comfortable 2-0 winners against the soldiers with a goal each by Shahdon Winchester and Joevin Jones.
This time around Defence Force with a basically unchanged roster, from last season, will tackle a new-look Connection.
Connection are without Winchester who joined Finland’s FF Jaro last January, but the “Savonnetta Boys” boasts pre-season imports Celio Guilherme Da Silva Santos and João Ananias Jordão Júnior of Brazil,
Colombians Yefer Steven Lozano Rubiano, Yhon Stiven Reyes Lopez and Camilo Andres Ortega Diaz, and Italian striker Mirko Delia.
Meanwhile the Defence Force squad is a very familiar one although the 2010-11 TT Pro League/Toyota Player of the Year, Jorsling, will be notably absent. The 29-year-old army private is currently on a promotional course towards the rank of lance corporal and would only be available to coach Russell from the end of September.
Team captain and defender Corey Rivers will lead out the squad inclusive of goalkeepers Kevin Graham and Sheldon Clarke; defenders Devin Jordan, Marvin Jones, Rodell Elcock, Glynn Franklyn, Aklie Edwards; midfielders Jerwyn Balthazar, Dexter Pacheco, Curtis Gonzales, Josimar Belgrave, Jemel Sebro, Kerry Joseph, Sean Narcis, Ross Russell Jr.; and attackers Kevon Carter and Richard Roy.
“This (season) we are looking to fill the (cabinet),” said an ambitious Russell. “We are looking to get more trophies in there.”
Last season Russell, with the help of able assistant Marvin Gordon, led the soldiers to the league title with 49 points, 6 points clear of second positioned Caledonia AIA, and 9 points ahead of 2011-12 winners, W Connection.
But failed to capture any of the knockout—First Citizens Cup, Toyota
Classic, FA Trophy, Lucozade Sport Goal Shield and Digicel Pro
Bowl—tournaments.
However by winning the league title, Russell and the Defence Force have qualified themselves along with runners-up Caledonia to challenge the rest of the Caribbean for qualification into next season’s Concacaf Champions League.
“Last (season) I think we were a little shaky in the Cups, and we were too focused on the league (title),” explained Russell, the two-time league winning coach of the Defence Force.
“But I think the team has set different goals (this time around),” he continued. “Before I used to set the goals because I love to play CFU (Caribbean Football Union) and Concacaf (Champions League), and because I think those are the right spots for clubs in Trinidad and Tobago to showcase themselves and their talents, as well as stretch your coaching knowledge.
“So I think the team is more focused this season. Last season we just wanted to win back our (League) trophy that we lost to W Connection, and we did that. So this season we are going to try to retain our title and try to win at least two or three (knockout titles).”
Russell, who also led the soldiers to league triumph in 2010-2011, before a Trinidad and Tobago issued State of Emergency (SOE) hampered the team’s attempts to retain the title in 2011-2012, labeled 2012-2013 a fantastic season.
He said, “I think it was a fantastic season for the club … seeing that for the first time all the teams did well. Our Pro team and Reserve team won their leagues respectively, and the U17, U15 and U13 teams finished second, third, and second respectively. So you can see the progress that we are making.”
The former Trinidad and Tobago and Defence Force goalie praised the support of San Juan Jabloteh, which was adopted to serve as the youth teams of the Defence Force last season.
“Thanks to the Jabloteh organization that they helped us a bit in organizing our youth programme, because I know they were, as we would say, starving for football. Mr Azad Khan and the administration of Jabloteh, and myself did a co-job with their youths and our youths and had strong teams,” concluded Russell.