Korea Republic's Women's footballers were overjoyed on Thursday evening after they defeated Nigeria 6-5 in an enthralling quarterfinal fixture at the Ato Boldon Stadium to advance to the semifinal of the Fifa Under 17 Women's World Cup. They will next face Spain on Tuesday at the Ato Boldon Stadium from 3pm and are also assured to play on the final day on September 25 either in the final or the third place playoff. The extended stay for the Koreans has delighted head coach Duck Joo Choi to the extent where is already considering returning for a holiday. Joo Choi recalls his visit to Pigeon Point Beach Resort as his most enjoyable experience so far.
Enjoyable experience
"It's an interesting place to be, Trinidad and Tobago and I'm really happy that we can stay longer. We want to experience more of Trinidad and go to the beach some more," Joo Choi said after the win over Nigeria. "We haven't had a chance to experience too much local food because we have to follow our own menu but I hope to taste some of the Trinidad food before I leave the country. I like the curry crabs. It's fantastic because in my country we don't have too much coconut and palm trees. The environment was very nice in Tobago and very good for training and playing the matches. "The sunshine in the morning and the sunset at the seaside is very lovely. It's very peaceful," he added.
"We went to Pigeon Point bay and that has been my most memorable moment for me from this visit."
Joo Choi recalls visits by the Men's Senior team to play South Korea in Seoul in 2004 and then previous visits by the Under 20 and Under 17 Men's team as well as the Under 17 Women's team. He hopes the exchange of matches and training camps can continue. "It's so long to fly to get here but I don't mind coming back with my family or with another Korean team. I remember when the men's A team came in 2004 to Seoul. The Fifa Vice President Jack Warner has a good relationship with our Federation and President Mong Joon Chung so I think we can certainly arrange for future matches. I will certainly like to come back to Trinidad and Tobago," he concluded.
Meantime, while it would have been a disappointing evening for the Republic of Ireland after they went out 2-1 to Japan on Friday night at the Larry Gomes Stadium,� head coach Noel King said he will take home some memorable moments of his T&T 2010 experience. "For me it's been the people... they've been absolutely great hosts and very helpful on this stay. Before I came here I was told to be careful and not to venture too much and I wasn't sure about the place but now I can say that's not that bad as they make it out to be. I enjoyed this tournament and I'm happy we got to be here," King said after his team's closing match.