Public release Dwarika, Andrews and Glasgow

Among those booted out are national midfielder Arnold Dwarika, Gary Glasgow and Lyndon Andrews as the club announced this week that their contracts were not being renewed for the 2009 season.

It means that come next year the “Eastern Lions” will feature a number of cubs in their den.

Yesterday in a telephone conversation, managing-director of the club Darryl Warner revealed that the decision to cut the team’s roster, came following a recent meeting with Joe Public’s chairman Jack Warner.

It was agreed that a number of the club’s top players did not live up to expectations both on and off the field.

“These are some of the highest paid players in the TT Pro League and the country and because so much was done for them this season, they still did not reciprocate the kind of returns that the club had been expecting,” the younger Warner said.

“To whom much is given, much is expected. but the players just did not live up to expectations,” the M-D added.

Players from the Under-20 and Under-23 teams as well as those from the Superleague teams will be used in the TT Pro League. And he said that the only overseas professionals in the team next year will be Colombian goalkeeper Alejandro Figueroa and Haitian Ulren St Victor.

Warner made it clear that the decision is one that will focus on development of the club and the players during a two-year span.

He pointed out that although the team may not win the TT Pro League, they do intend to be competitive.

He revealed that the players also received hefty bonuses following their victories in the earlier qualifying rounds of the CONCACAF Club Championship against the New England Revolution.

“The Eastern Lions” defeated the American team (New England Revolution) 2-1 in the opening leg and 4-2 in the second.

Apart from the trio, the contracts of Shane Calderon, Kerry Noray, Christopher Harvey, Anthony Bennette, Wolry Wolfe and Roen Nelson were not renewed for the coming season.

Warner told Newsdaythat in addition to Andrews who has worn the club colours for the past years, the club has also agreed to release Dexter Thornhill, Silas Spann- the son of former national football icon Leroy Spann and Andre Charles-Foster.

He said the club did well to qualify for the group stage of the CONCACAF Club Championship but afterwards their performances dropped tremendously in spite of a victory against Mexico’s Atalante.

“The team failed to win a single match in the group of the CONCACAF Championship which first led to the dismissal of Barbadian coach Keith Griffith.

“It was then that we decided to use the younger players in a promotional system to represent the team,” Warner said.

The shocking news came following Joe Public early vacation following their exits in the Toyota Classic and FA Trophy competitions—both of which the Eastern Lions were defending this season. Joe Public finished this season without silverware and fifth in the League Championship.