TT slam Moroccan side 2-0

MARRAKECH: Trinidad and Tobago’s senior footballers completed a comfortable victory in their first taste of action yesterday ahead of tomorrow’s friendly international against the host nation Morocco.

A pair of first-half goals by Birmingham City striker Stern John gave TT a 2-0 win over local club side Nejm Marrakech at the Stade Harte. The match served as a timely training affair in which TT coach Stuart Charles-Fevrier used the opportunity to give each player a run with the exception of Scottish-based defender Brent Sancho. The player had received orders from Dr Terrence Babwah to rest a sore hip. TT played the match with some intensity but were also cautious and avoided the risk of injuries before the main event. One of the high points of the evening was the positive showing of new Watford striker Jason Norville who played a part in the opening goal when he was brought down inside the penalty box to allow John to convert the penalty. The former Nottingham Forest striker started up front alongside Norville and Hector Sam in yesterday’s training match and notched a double before going off at half-time. His second item came in the 29th minute following a neat buildup involving Aurtis Whitley and Norville after which his header went in underneath the bar.

CL Financial San Juan Jabloteh goalkeeper Kelvin Jack was rarely tested but was still called upon to make a couple decent saves even as his defence of sweeper Reynold Carrington, Dennis Lawrence and Marvin Andrews kept things steady at the back. John was upbeat after the match but sported a serious look as he left the playing field. “So far things are looking good. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again these are the kind of matches we need to be playing. The team spirit is excellent and this is exactly what we need in these times especially with the qualifiers around the corner. “If we can get that same kind of togetherness on the field as we have off it, I think it is  going to make us a difficult team to defeat,”  John said yesterday. “Hopefully we can get a good result with a good performance on Wednesday because that is all that counts right now. We as a team need to make the sacrifices and stand up for each other. I think that at this stage, we realise we will have to shoulder much, if not all the burdens if we are to stand any chance of doing well in the World Cup qualifiers,” John said. “I think right now there is not much respect for us as a football nation out there and we have to dig deep to get things back in order. We must perform and earn that respect,” said John, who indicated that he has now accepted the fact that any return of a Russell Latapy or a Dwight Yorke is out of the question and as a result, the time is now one for the current quota of professionals on the team to take up the responsibilities.

Coach Charles-Fevrier meantime was quietly optimistic. “It was just the kind of training exercise we needed before the big match on Wednesday,” Charles-Fevrier said afterwards as the players relaxed at the luxurious Le Meridien Hotel. “I have a pretty good idea now of what our starting team will be like and what our tactical formation will be like on Wednesday. My main objective today was not to win but just an opportunity to play together in what I felt was a good dress rehearsal. I can also see young Jason Norville being a good player for us in the future,” said Charles Fevrier.