South Korea’s National Under 17 Women’s team proved to be too much to handle for Trinidad and Tobago in the closing match of the three-match series at the National Football Centre in Paju as they turned out 6-0 winners on Saturday.
The result, an obviously disappointing one for the T&T contingent after their 3-1 win in the first match last week, was more of what the hosts had expected from the onset as they demonstrated just why they were crowned champions of Asia and are expected to pose as a threat in the FIFA Under 17 Women’s World Cup here in September.
Min Ji Yeo did the bulk of the damage with five goals and So Dam Lee got the other as T&T after being just 1-0 down at half time conceded their goals in the 12', 55', 66', 78', 85' and 89' minutes.
Pellerud, while mindful of the heavy defeat, maintained that the training camp served its purpose well and he was confident it would aid T&T’s preparations for the FIFA Under 17 World Cup in September.
"We ran out of gas after one half in this last game of the South Korean series. A strong first half ended 1-0 for Korea, and I am very pleased with good defending and a high number of well set up attacks. We continued to run thin on player options, too many players were not ready to play due to minor injuries - and we could not match the Koreans superior ball control in the 2nd half,” Pellerud told TTFF Media.
He added that the Koreans punished T&T for its lapses that may have easily gone unnoticed by Concacaf opponents in the previous 4Nation tournament.
“It might sound strange to see any kind of positives out of a 6-0 defeat, but there are good things to say about the T&T as well. The result does not reflect the match very well, as at times we matched the excellent opposition very well.
“The Korean team was undoubtedly capable of relieving some defensive errors that neither Mexico nor Canada could during the 4Nations tournament. They were good enough to make us identify issues in our backline. First and foremost our backline needs to play more consistent and solid, and with more authority! We are going to take steps in order to make this team unit stronger, and the coaching staff is already discussing our options.”
Pellerud did find the time to credit some of his players for their noteworthy contributions during the matches.
“On the flip side, some of our players have taken advantage of this series and stepped up their individual performances. Players that deserve to be mentioned are Goalkeeper Kari Myers and midfielder Victoria Swift; 2 players that matched our opponents in all areas. Also credit to Kayla Taylor who was providing attacking runs and crossball skills from the right side. As a team, we have seen our midfield improve on their ability to defend well and also their ability to attack with purpose."
T&T Line Up
1. Keri MYERS (GK)
2. Camille BORNEO (DEF/CAPT)
3. Khadisha DEBESETTE (DEF)
4. Courtney BAHADURSINGH (DEF)
5. Rehana OMARDEEN (DEF) (75')/ Patrice VINCENT
6. Kayla TAYLOR (MF)
7. Tineisha COBHAM (MF) (45') / Jasmine Sampson
8. Khadidra DEBESETTE (MF)
9. Victoria SWIFT (MF)
10. Nia WALCOTT (MF) (75')/ Diarra SIMMONS
11. Jo-Marie LEWIS (FOR)