Lottery $5 million for Warriors

At a press conference at the Maracas Room, Marriott Courtyard, Invaders Bay, Mucurapo yesterday, the NLCB chairman Louis Lee Sing announced that $5 million is to be presented to the TTFF’s development programme broken into annual $1 million contributions.

Warner jokingly stated that "It’s not a one-night stand, it’s a five-year stand," adding that the NLCB will have the option to extend their contractual obligations for a further five years. The TTFF Special Advisor also lauded the NLCB for their long-term vision, stressing that other firms will be quick to jump off the bandwagon if the national team fails to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

As is customary with any press conference involving Warner, the president of CONCACAF and CFU spoke on a number of topics, in particular the upcoming home-and-away Final Round Qualifiers against Bahrain (November 12 and 16), their plans for a camp before the November 12 clash at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo and the ongoing David Nakhid controversy.

Warner returned from the Middle East nation on Thursday night with assistant team manager George Joseph and TTFF general secretary Richard Groden, where they had gone to finalise arrangements for the Trinidad and Tobago team. "Had we gone there a half-day late, we would’ve gotten no hotels for our team and supporters," stressed Warner, who added that, on Wednesday, the trio was left to choose Crowne Plaza for the TT contingent.

Regarding the week-long saga involving ex-national captain and assistant team coach David Nakhid, Warner noted, "I refuse to allow those distractions to affect me or the (TTFF). I will take part in no debate. We will not allow anything to distract us from the goals we have set ourselves. We have to win here on the 12th and win on the 16th."

He revealed that the TTFF has organised a number of international friendlies for the team when they qualify for Germany "and one of these will blow your mind when we announce it." Warner pleaded with the gathering at Maracas Room, "The same way you stay focused on Lotto, Donsai and Play Whe, as you should, I want you to stay focused on the two matches.

"Anybody who believes they have been hurt, real or imagine, we apologise," he noted. "What is important in the events of November 12 and 16 (is that) everything else in sport takes second place. So don’t ask me if I’m a football illiterate. I’ll tell you ‘Yes I am and I reach damn far for it.’

"Let us look at the match and the players, let us see where they have come from, look at their goals, look at the dreams they have and then we can understand that everyone of them are given their dues."

Warner described the facilities in Bahrain as first class, adding that the stadium in capital city Manama is an all-seater with a capacity of 35,000 while the entry fee for the November 16 contest is US$50.

"One Bahrain dollar is six TT cents, so you’ll know how to count your money when you travel," he added. "The weather in Bahrain is exactly like what we have here but, in any event, the match there is 7 pm (Bahrain time) and it’s cool at night."