June 9, 2006
NOT SO GREAT EXPECTATIONS
First-timers Trinidad a probable non-factor

The likelihood of Trinidad & Tobago doing anything in Germany is slim and none. Just getting to soccer's biggest stage in the world was a story unto itself, considering what T&T had to endure since the U.S. slammed the door on the Caribbean's country best chance to reach the World Cup in 1990.

You probably know the story already: Trinidad needed only a tie in its final qualifiers in Port of Spain on November 19, 1989. Instead, the U.S. and Paul Caligiuri, who scored the lone goal of the match, broke the Trinidadians’ hearts en route to a 1-0 victory.

For 16 unsweet years, the country's soccer fans suffered until the Soca Warriors qualified for Germany 2006, becoming the smallest country to reach the World Cup and only the second English-speaking Caribbean country to accomplish the feat (Jamaica was the other in 1998).

Trinidad faces a formidable task of trying to overcome World Cup veterans England, Sweden and Paraguay. Just getting a point would be considered a major accomplishment for the Soca Warriors.

"You take it from me that Trinidad & Tobago is not going to Germany to become numbers," said Trinidad Football Federation consultant Warner, a controversial figure during his tenure as a FIFA vice president. "We are not going to Germany to be beaten by Tom, Dick or Harry. We are going to Germany to light up the country with our culture, our music, our talents, our steel band. We are going to show our cuisine. Most importantly, on the field of play, we shall perform in a most clever way."

Veteran midfielder-forward Dwight Yorke, who waited his entire career for an opportunity to play in international soccer's showcase, agreed.

"We don't plan to go there and be just another team," he said. "We can progress. This team has already made a lot of progress and we can go a lot further. We aim to go there and to be counted."

Just reaching the World Cup was considered a longshot because the team was nowhere near playing close to its potential under coach Bertille St. Clair. In fact, St. Clair, in his second tenure, feuded with the Trinidad media for several months.

St. Clair claimed it was because he is a native of Tobago and the newspapers don't like him. The papers, in turn, claimed St. Clair didn't take criticism of the team too personally.

The Trinidad Express said St. Clair was "by far the most media unfriendly" coach in the past 16 years. In its November 25, 2005 editions, the Express printed an unflattering quote from St. Clair after he was asked a question about T&T's disappointing performance in its 2-1 victory over St. Vincent Grenadines.

This is the exact quote from the Express:

"I is the most successful coach all yuh ever had in all yuh life," he said. "All yuh bring foreigner, all yuh bring them from all over, and when they do wrong, all yuh bawl yeah, yeah. They bawl meh down because I from Tobago. I carry all yuh to the Gold Cup, the Under -16 win thing, the U-13 win. But because I from Tobago, I know it. I know the cry . . . The papers go write it tomorrow. But I don't care. I know where I going when I leave here. But doh worry 'bout the firing, that ain't have nothing to do with it, ah go through that already."

If you go by qualifying history, you will discover it has been one of great promise and expectations and rather ordinary results or little realization.

Since the 1970 qualifying competition, Trinidad had attempted to reach the World Cup 10 times and 10 times the country has failed.

Their closest encounter was in 1989. Most T&T football supporters agree that their Strike Force -- which they were called then -- would not have a better opportunity to reach the Cup.

Even with such dangerous players as forwards Yorke and Jerren Nixon Trinidad fell short of its potential in its attempts at the 1994, 1998 and 2002 World Cup. The 2002 effort was nothing short of a disaster in the final round as T&T registered a horrendous 1-7-2 mark to finish in sixth and last place.

Despite its promise, Trinidad has a reputation that as a team it can lose focus in a hurry and that if an opposition scores first, the players' heads will fall as some of the fight has been taken out of them.

Dutch coach Leo Beenhakker has started to turn that around. He took over on April Fool's Day, 2005 and he demonstrated that he certainly wasn't fooling around as Trinidad became the smallest country ever -- 1.3 million population -- to reach the World Cup.

Warner said that Beenhakker "has been simply a magician. We have to respect him. We have to thank him for what he has done.

"We have given the coach Beenhakker total control. He has been told he has all the funding he needs."

While the clinching game certainly wasn't without its slip-ups and dramatic points, Trinidad's 1-0 victory over host Bahrain that clinched a berth showed that the Caribbean side had some fortitude in the late going. Dennis Lawrence, a lanky 6-foot-7, defender, headed in the lone goal in a 1-0 victory.

While nowhere near the same player of 10 or even five years ago, Yorke certainly still has moments after he was persuaded by St. Clair to come out of retirement. Playing more of a laid-back forward or attacking midfielder role, Yorke 34, proved he still has some magic left in his feet. For example, the team captain scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Iceland on March 1.

"That's why we invited him," Beenhakker told Agence-France Press. "He's a good player. I know that some people are talking about his age and stuff like that, but so long as he's fit he's a great player not only in an individual way but for the team. He's a great help to me. I can give him a message and he can translate it on to the pitch. He's a very important player. He can always bring you something extra."

"To do it again, now as captain, is something to be very proud of."

Stern John, who in 1999 led Major League Soccer with 26 goals while playing for the Columbus Crew -- one shy of the league record of 27 set by Roy Lassiter -- will be the striker the team will rely upon up front. He certainly got some decent target practice during qualifying, connecting a team-best 12 times.

Russell Latapy, 37, first decided to retire from international soccer, then came back as a player-coach, which is quite rare at a World Cup.

The victory over Iceland on British soil was a confidence builder.

"Players are coming back to train with us from all over the world and we are having just three or four days together," Beenhakker said. "They all come from different football cultures and play in different leagues so sometimes it is hard for them to adapt quickly to the way we want them to play.

"I think a lot of people will be surprised at what we will be able to do at the World Cup. This is a very good squad of players."

It won't be easy against the likes of England, Sweden and Paraguay.

"Our dream is to surprise these opponents," Beenhakker told the Hamburger Abendblatt. "In football two and two don't always add up to four. Sometimes five. No one can be sure, not even the big sides. In football you always have a chance. It's that simple."

Trinidad once was a colony of England, so just getting a point would be considered quite an accomplishment.

"The general consensus in Trinidad is: It doesn't matter what else we do, the main thing is to beat England," he said. "After our qualification we had three months of carnival. If we don't lose against England we would well have carnival for a whole year."

A bit of interesting information for World Cup history buffs

Trinidad & Tobago is only the fifth Caribbean country and the second English-speaking nation from that reach to reach the World Cup. Its predecessors include Cuba (1938), Dutch East Indies (1938), Haiti (1974) and Jamaica (1998), who have compiled a 2-7-1 record, scoring 10 goals and allowing 41.