THE TTFA (TT Football Association) is currently advertising the post for national women’s team coach, with local, and even international coaches, available to apply.
The position has been vacant for over a year, since Stephan De Four was dismissed in December 2019.
De Four served as coach for the 2020 Olympic Games qualifying series, but the T&T squad were eliminated in the group stage, in October 2019. Even though T&T, as hosts, were the overwhelming favourites to advance as the group winners, from Group A of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) leg, they finished third in the group, behind St Kitts/Nevis and Dominican Republic.
De Four, who was hired during the David John-Williams regime, was fired after William Wallace took over as TTFA president.
Wallace only lasted four months in the role before he and his executive were removed by FIFA in March 2020 and replaced by a normalisation committee, headed by Robert Hadad, due to rising debt incurred by the local governing body.
This is the first coaching position advertised by the TTFA since Hadad and his committee (comprising Judy Daniel and Nigel Romano) were allowed full control of local football affairs, by FIFA, last November.
Former T&T women’s coach Jamaal Shabazz is calling for a local women’s coach to be appointed to the vacant position.
Shabazz, who is presently the St Lucia men’s team coach, said on Monday, “I would like to see a local female coach take over the reins now.”
One person who is throwing his hat into the ring is Richard Hood, who served as T&T Under-20 women’s coach during the Concacaf Championships in the Dominican Republic last February. Hood, on Monday, said, “I would definitely be applying for the post.”
A media release from the TTFA on Monday said applicants for the position of the coach must be able to lead training sessions, provide motivation and advice during gameplay, develop game plans, attend tryouts, schedule team meetings and be able to identify the individual abilities of each player.
The successful appointee will become a member of the TTFA’s technical department; lead and manage the national team, including its player personnel and technical staff; aid in selecting players; develop and implement the training programme; submit the programme to the TTFA’s technical director; report on the implementation of the programme to the TTFA’s technical director and technical committee, including the performance of player personnel and technical staff; assist in the training programmes of other national teams; and perform other technical assignments, as recommended by the association’s technical director and technical committee.
Hadad mentioned on Monday that the normalisation committee will be in a position to pay the salary for the T&T women’s coach.
“We would have the money to pay the coaches,” said Hadad. “We do have money coming in this year. The problem is the money that you get in a calendar year, you use it for football for that year.
“That’s the big problem,” Hadad continued, “with the past debt, is that you have to find ways and means, and you have to prioritise who and what is more important. Everybody will be dealt with as we go along, but it cannot happen overnight. We are going to advertise for (coaches for) the Under-17 boys and Under-17 women. We have to get football back on the field of play.”
Amiel Mohammed, Hadad’s assistant, commented, “The football committee will have to access and, within the covid(19) restrictions and the requirements for the Concacaf and FIFA calendar, they would have to select the best candidate that can operate under these conditions right now.”
The media release said applicants should submit their resume, contact information and copies of all related documents by e-mail to technical.ttfa@gmail.com.
They can also be submitted to the office of the TTFA at the Ato Boldon Stadium, Balmain, Couva, by January 19. Applicants can call 364-0489 for more information,
The women’s team will be focusing on the 2022 Concacaf Women’s Championship, which will serve as qualifiers for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, scheduled to be hosted jointly by Australia and New Zealand.