7 THINGS WE LEARNED FROM 7-0

 7 THINGS WE LEARNED FROM 7-0

Terry Fenwick finally got the opportunity to set his feet on the touchline for a competitive game as T&T Head Coach and it’s fair to say that things didn’t quite go to plan.

The Soca Warriors were humiliated in a 7-0 trashing against a weakened and inexperienced US team in Orlando on January 31^st , equalling the record for the nation’s heaviest ever defeat (previously 7-0 vs Mexico in 2000). Following T&T’s WCQ 2-1 win against the US (that denied them a place in the 2018 World Cup), the Warriors’ next two games against the CONCACAF giants ended 6-0 (at the 2019 Gold Cup) and 7-0. So what is wrong with the national team? Why are we so bad?

Here are 7 things we learned from the 7-0 washing:

1. Football Politics Still Weighs Heavy
   Over the past few months, Terry Fenwick would have been in training with a specific group of players, who were expected to be featuring in T&T’s practice/friendly matches. However, merely days before the trip to Orlando, Fenwick called up a handful of foreign-based players, mostly based in the US, with little to almost no time training with the squad.It is important to note that many of these “new” players were debutants (never played for the national team before), which led to questions being asked about the commitment to local player development. It seemed truly unjust to sack players who spent months training in the squad for foreign-based players who had no idea who their teammates were.
   
   
2. TTFA’s False Ego
   Given the state of our local football association and national team, questions must be asked concerning the decision to face the US in the first place. Many of our local players haven’t played competitive football in almost a year, so why did our FA think that it was a good idea to face the best team in our region? Trinidad & Tobago is no longer a Caribbean powerhouse that can compete against the top CONCACAF teams, and that has been the case for some time now, so why did we think that we can use a game against USA to prepare our team for World Cup qualifying? As T&T forward, Joevin Jones, rightly said, it was a “suicide mission” setting the team up for failure. The most apt solution would have been to play a team close to our level to build confidence and chemistry. The Warriors left Orlando with neither.
   
   
3. Fenwick Needs Awareness
   As Head Coach, Terry Fenwick usually has good ideas in theory, but they clearly weren’t executed on this occasion. It was observed that he tried to play a pressing game, which is probably what he implemented in training, but it was against the wrong team. Perhaps, he should have set up a defensive team and play on the counter-attack, as it would have prepared the team for those kind of games. It’s not every game you get to play your preferred brand of football, and T&T may have a lot of defending to do in World Cup qualifying. The focus should have been on keeping a clean sheet.
   
   
4. The Team Lacks Leadership
   Over the years, the national team has had some big voices to the lead the team on the pitch and in the dressing room. From Dwight Yorke to Carlos Edwards to Kenwyne Jones, T&T was almost always led by a player who could motivate the team and who could lead by example. That’s not what was seen from Josiah Trimmingham on Sunday. Trimmingham, captaining the team on his second international appearance, was arguably the worst player on the pitch. He was slow, he wasn’t vocal, and many highlighted that he was overweight. Fenwick’s decision to go against expectations that Alvin Jones would wear the armband didn’t pay off, and T&T suffered. Someone needed to step up, no one did.
   
   
5. Youth Development in T&T is Extremely Poor
   After the game, Terry Fenwick pointed out that the US team has youth players (aged 20-23) at Bayern Munich, Barcelona, RB Leipzig, Chelsea, Schalke and Juventus, while T&T’s youth development is non-existent. “We haven’t got a development program in Trinidad. There’s nothing at grassroots level – U13s, U15s, U17s. So, when these players get to my national side, there’s still a lot of development to be done”. It’s no secret that not enough effort is being put into youth football in the country. When the greatest form of “development” is school football, then something is seriously wrong and needs to change. Trinidad & Tobago has many football clubs; every club should have an academy to target different age groups right up to senior level/first team. Youth development should not be dependent on the government and Ministry of Sport camps.
6. T&T Fans Add to the Frustrations
   Even though football is a product that depends on results to gain attraction, T&T citizens and fans must support the team unconditionally. The toxicity from fans doesn’t help our situation at all, especially in our generation where players read the tweets, comments and headlines about them on social media. This further dents their confidence and they struggle to perform to the best of their ability, continuing the downward spiral into chaos.
7. T&T Isn’t Ready For International Competition
   
   Lastly, if it wasn’t clear since the 2019 Gold Cup, it’s now clearer than ever that T&T isn’t ready to compete on the international stage. There is a lot of work that needs to be done behind the scenes, and it needs to be done quickly. At this rate, T&T may sit out this year’s Gold Cup and next year’s World Cup, which isn’t ideal but it may be best. The US were better in every area on the pitch and every aspect of the game. It’s hard to see the Warriors competing with any team on that level. The focus and the necessary work should be mapped out in a five-year project to get the team to the 2026 World Cup.

-David Scarlett.