Naps midfielder captains Under-17s

Naparima College midfielder Javed Mohammed will captain Trinidad and Tobago’s Under-17 team in the preliminary group stage of the Caribbean Football Union World Championship  qualifiers at the Dwight Yorke Stadium, Bacelot from tomorrow. The team, under coach Nigel Grosvenor, is currently in camp in Mt Irvine ahead of their opening match against St Lucia from 7 pm tomorrow. The match will be the second of a double-header with Barbados taking on Bahamas in the earlier fixture from 5pm. Grosvenor, coach of the highly successful St Anthony’s College has had the team in training for the past six months and is coming off several live in camps including one at Forest Reserve, Fyzabad. The hosts have also played warm-up matches against local opposition, defeating St Benedict’s College 9-2; losing 2-1 to a South West Drillers outfit; and defeated Tobago United’s Pro team 3-0 last Thursday at Shaw Park.

Nyron Orr, Michael Brown and Kyle McIvor were the scorers in that affair. Grosvenor says while his team will be cautious of their Caribbean counterparts, they feel confident that they have prepared well and will deliver the goods in the tournament. “We are confident at the moment but it all breaks down to how the boys react mentally on the days of the matches. We have done well in the training matches but also have been playing without any pressure and so we are just looking forward to the big stage because that’s when it really counts,” Grosvenor said. “We have been playing good football, playing the ball and deck and building into attack and strong on the defensive side as well as in the middle. The team is  prepared to play total football. But we are well aware that no team can be taken for granted,” he said.

“We just want the fans in Tobago to come out and support the team because these are our future senior team players and they cannot be left out or forgotten at this stage in their careers.” The TT team includes young midfielder Silan Spann, son of former national player Leroy Spann and brother of current senior team midfielder Silvio Spann. Some notable names include Fatima College defender Marvin James who was on the last national Under-17 team; Queen’s Royal College forward Kyle McIvor; and Tobago players Scarborough Secondary defender Jeromy Williams, Kerlon Fergusson of Mason Hall Government, defender Jevon Morton of Signal Hill Senior Comprehensive and Nyron Orr of Roxborough Composite. Admission for the matches which will all be played at the Dwight Yorke Stadium is $20 (covered stands), $10 (uncovered) and children Under-12 will be allowed free in the uncovered stands.