Coach: TT achieved their objective

"The guys did quite well. Our first objective was to qualify for the World Cup and the other to win the tournament," Francois said on arrival back home on Sunday.

"We managed to do the first one, which was the most important one."

Francois said there were sub-zero conditions in Canada but it did not affect TT.

"While it was snowing a lot, the conditions inside the venue were pretty good, in fact we actually tried to play as if we were the home team," Francois pointed out.

Reflecting on the semifinal match against the USA, which assured TT of a World Cup spot, the coach said it was very tough.

"We had beaten the USA 8-0 in the group stage and, knowing that we were just one win away from the World Cup, the guys were a bit nervous at the start.

"In the end, we had to battle our way to a sudden-death win," Francois explained.

He also felt that his team missed a great chance to win the gold medal by not converting the many chances created.

"It was just a matter of us not putting away our chances. We had at least six penalty-corners we did not make anything of," Francois said.

"Had we made full use of our chances in the first half, I think it would have been difficult for Canada to come back in the second half. We did not do that and they took full advantage in the end." Looking to the finals in Austria, Francois said offers were on the table for the national men’s team to compete in a four-nation competition with Canada, Italy and France.

In the meanwhile, the national team will start training for the Commonwealth Games in Australia, March 16-31.

Stag Malvern’s Wayne Legerton was the top scorer for TT in the series with eight goals, while Nicholas Wren had seven and Raphael Govia, six. Dwain Quan Chan finished with five, Dillet Gilkes, three while Anthony Marcano, Alan Young and Roger Daniel hit one each.

As if TT’s qualification for the World Cup was not enough, its captain, Kwandwane Browne, was voted "Most Valuable Player" in the Pan American competition. Browne, a volunteer assistant coach with the University of North Carolina, USA, scored six goals in leading TT to their first berth in the Indoor World Cup.

TT took second place in the Pan Am series, losing 5-3 to Canada in the final at Rim Park, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario, Canada on Sunday.