St Clair gets tough with footballers

TRINIDAD and Tobago football coach Bertille St Clair has vowed to increase the intensity of preparations for the upcoming CONCACAF 2006 semi-final round qualifier against St Vincent and the Grenadines at Arnos Vale on August 18. Back home last Friday from the two-match Asian tour, St Clair will resume training at the Larry Gomes Stadium tomorrow. Added to the training squad are Lebanon-based forward Errol McFarlane Jr and former St Anthony’s College and Mobile University, US midfielder Gary Gibbings. The rest of the squad includes skipper Angus Eve, Scott Sealy, Kerry Baptiste, Densil Theobald, Duarance Williams, Marlon Rojas, Derek King, Silvio Spann, Michael Celestine and Keyeno Thomas who all performed creditably in the recent 1-1 draw with 2002 World Cup semi-finalists South Korea.

“We are coming to the end of the second phase of the programme and we are going to increase the tempo even more. I said that we would build the team brick by brick and open the doors to all players and we are doing that. Success cannot happen overnight and I am satisfied with the progress we are making,” St Clair said on Tuesday. Reflecting on the Asian tour, the Tobagonian said it is a great experience and showed that the players are learning. “They are learning that football is not a walk in the park and that you have to run, tackle and move for the full 90 minutes.They are learning that no top team is going to give you the time and space to touch the ball three and four times. If you cannot control and pass quickly then you will be left behind,” he said.

“They are learning that they have just as much, if not more talent than the other countries but the attitude and the commitment is sometimes lacking. The Koreans take their football seriously and they have the full support of their government and the business sector,” St Clair said. “The fans and the media are also very supportive so it was a wonderful atmosphere to be in. People were telling us how much football has changed the lives of the Korean youths and you can see it everywhere you go,“ he said. “One of the benefits of having a tour like the Korean trip is that it allows the coach to spend time with the players and to work with them. Unfortunately it is difficult to get players to train with the national team,” he said.

“It was agreed with the local clubs that we would train only once per week  but now even that is in trouble. You get criticism when there is no understanding between the players but what can you achieve with just one day per week? And even that you can’t get sometimes,” he said. Looking ahead to the semi-final round, St Clair said there is still room for improvement in the team. ?We must now focus on the World Cup semi-final round and hopefully we can get one more warm-up game before the game against St.Vincent. I am pleased that we are developing a pool of  good players so that in the event of injury or loss of form, we have  cover in almost every position. There is still a lot of work to do and the guys are starting to understand what is required at this level.

Squad:
Duarance Williams, Jan-Michael Williams, Mikhel Peters, Derek King, Keyeno Thomas, Atiba Charles, Marlon Rojas, Stokely Mason, Anton Pierre; Angus Eve, Kerry Baptiste, Densil Theobald, Michael Celestine, Kerwyn Jemmot, Silvio Spann, Aurtis Seaton, Gary Gibbings; Jerren Nixon, Nigel Pierre, Scott Sealy, Darryl Roberts, Ashton Leggerton, Errol  Mc Farlane Jr.,and Marvin Oliver.