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UNITED STATES-based defenders Ayana Russell and Katrina Myers are among five foreign-based players in Guatemala with Trinidad and Tobago's senior women footballers.

The Soca Princesses are using a two-match tour of Guatemala as a final tune-up before going into the final round of 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup qualifying at the end of this month.

Team T&T left yesterday for Central America where they take on hosts Guatemala, who are also World Cup aspirants, on October 18 and for a second time two days later.

Both matches will be played at the Estadio Nacional Mateo Flores, which is the venue where Trinidad and Tobago's senior men footballers faced some hostility after earning a 0-0 draw and eliminating Guatemala from the 2010 World Cup.

The 20-member women's squad include Canada-born players Arin King (Ontario University) and Danielle Blair (University of Alabama), along with USA-based college players Anastacia Prescott (West Florida University), Russell (University of Alabama) and Myers (Murray State University).

Following their week in Guatemala, the Jamaal Shabazz-coached Soca Princesses return home for a further week of preparation, before leaving on October 26 for Mexico, where they contest the CONCACAF Women's World Cup Qualifying Championships.

Trinidad and Tobago are in Group A along with hosts Mexico, Canada and Guyana, while tournament favourites USA, Costa Rica, Guatemala and Haiti contest Group B.

The qualifying tournament runs from October 28-November 8 in Cancun, Mexico, and will crown the eighth CONCACAF women's champions.

Two countries will qualify directly for next year's Women's World Cup in Germany (June 26-July 17), while the third-place CONCACAF finishers will advance to a playoff against Europe's fifth-best team for a place in the World Cup.

Trinidad and Tobago qualified for the final round after playing unbeaten when topping Group F of the Caribbean qualifiers in May. Since then, the Soca Princesses have also finished second behind hosts Venezuela at the Central America and Caribbean (CAC) Women's Football Championship in July.

Before leaving for Guatemala, head coach Shabazz said the tour was integral to his preparations.

"We have done a lot of work on fitness and this is a chance to test that and to also integrate the foreign-based players into the squad," he said. "In international football, one week with your full squad is like a year these days and this gives us the opportunity to evaluate what we have done before going into World Cup qualifying."

Shabazz added that although he might not have gotten all that he wanted in terms of warm-up matches, the current preparation represented a step forward. And similar to the junior Soca Princesses at the recently-concluded Under-17 Women's World Cup hosted in T&T, Shabazz hopes that his players will make the country proud as well.

"It is the first time we have had the opportunity to have warm-up matches and prepare this well for a tournament," Shabazz said. "There has been a definite step forward in the women's football programme in Trinidad and Tobago and so both the players and staff are looking to step up and make use of the opportunity presented to us."

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

GOALKEEPERS: Kamika Forbes, Nicole Mitchell
DEFENDERS: Rhea Belgrave, Ayana Russell, Daniel Blair, Katrina Myers, Anastacia Prescott, Katryn Forbes, Patrice Superville, Arin King
MIDFIELDERS: Tasha St Louis, Afiya Mathias, Maylee Attin-Johnson, Jamila Mathlin, Dernell Mascall
STRIKERS: Kennya Cordner, Candice Edwards, Natasha St Louis

STAFF: Jamaal Shabazz (head coach), Marlon Charles (assistant coach), Vernatta Flanders (manager), Joanne Daniel (assistant manager), Dexter Thomas (trainer), Steve Fredericks (goalkeeper coach/equipment manager), Kerry Dolloway (physiotherapist)