8057: T & T and Haiti in COPA CARIBE Final (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Max Blanchet <maxblanchet@worldnet.att.net>

Warriors hunt eighth regional title

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By Lasana Liburd

24 May 2001 (TEAMtalk) - Trinidad and Tobago national senior team football
coach Ian Porterfield, by his own admission, has been "under pressure" at
the helm of the "Soca Warriors".

There will be no room for slip-ups tonight when defending champions T&T take
on Haiti in the 2001 Copa Caribe final from 7 pm at the Hasely Crawford
Stadium.

The host nation is seeking an impressive eighth regional title from 11
editions of the Caribbean tournament - four of them won on home soil - and
the first place bounty of US$50,000.

The runner-up receives US$20,000 while the third and fourth placed teams get
US$10,000 and US$6,000 respectively. All other participating nations left
with US$3,500.

However midfielder Brent Rahim, T&T's most promising player on show,
believes that T&T would lose the title if they repeat their performance in a
2-0 semi-final win over Cuba on Tuesday.

"I think we definitely have to play better than we did against Cuba," said
Rahim. "It's one thing going out there and fighting the game but we have to
play football. I don't think we can afford to stand up to 90 minutes of
pressure from Haiti.

"They will eventually score."

Rahim echoed Porterfield's concerns about the team's slow starts and
promised that the "Warriors" would come out firing.

Porterfield should be just as concerned, though, with their inability to
consistently bring the ball upfield - uninterrupted - from goalkeeper
Clayton Ince through to strikers Stern John and Arnold Dwarika.

It was Cuba who showed greater appreciation for ball possession and dictated
the pace of the match on Tuesday evening at the Hasely Crawford Stadium
although the hosts emerged winners.

The Haitians, however, are a different prospect all together.

In their 5-0 semi-final win over Martinique, they rarely seemed interested
in prolonged possession and are happier to strike quickly on the break.

Captain Golman Pierre, the tournament's leading goal scorer with five items,
will be their attacking linchpin ably assisted by strike partner Renel
Mompremier.

A tall elegant striker, Pierre has paid the price for his early successes
and was marked heavily in his last two group matches.

He should be closely watched attentively tonight as well by T&T captain
Marvin "Dog" Andrews.

On the other end, Haitian defender Bruny Pierre will know all about his Joe
Public teammate Arnold Dwarika and tends to run a similarly tight shop.

Like T&T's group match against Jamaica, the midfield should hold the key for
tonight's contest.

Porterfield, already without the suspended Angus Eve, must decide who will
hold the reigns of playmaker.

Hibernian midfielder Lyndon Andrews has not done himself justice in that
role while Porterfield has been reluctant to use either Rahim or Dwarika
behind the two strikers.

The Scotsman would recall, though, that T&T's best performance in the
tournament came when assistant coach Zoran Vranes - deputising for the
suspended Porterfield - withdrew Dwarika to the midfield in the second half
to telling effect.

There has been less debate over the exclusion of Vibe CT 105 W.Connection
captain Reynold Carrington for Joe Public midfielder Dale Saunders.

Although Carrington does not offer the mobility of Saunders, his strength -
not to mention composure and distribution?may be a crucial asset against the
physical Haitians.

But then Porterfield has had more than just the Copa Caribe tournament on
his mind of late.

Last Saturday, he was quoted in a daily newspaper as saying that the
Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation's (T&TFF) decision to hire Brazilian
Rene Simoes without first consulting him was a mark of disrespect.

On Wednesday, he said that "some people want to put me under pressure"
while, at the same time, insisting that the T&T squad had "improved
tremendously" during his tenure.

He would be well advised to give his employers a sneak preview tonight.