Substitute Trevin Caesar scored a pair of goals as T&T Under-23 footballers trounced host Dominica 4-0 in their final Group B match of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) London Olympic qualifiers at Windsor Park Stadium, Roseau on Saturday night. Caesar's introduction for opening goalscorer Cameron Roget in the 76th minute proved crucial for the young Soca Warriors as he inspired the team to get the four-goal win it needed to finish ahead of Netherlands Antilles on goal difference. In the day's first match, the Dutch-speaking island blanked Grenada 2-0 to end with seven points. T&T dominated from the opening whistle with a business-like approach but were unfortunate not to be comfortably ahead by half-time after missing numerous chances and hitting the post on two occasions. US-based Roget fired T&T ahead in the 34th minute with an acrobatic finish, while on the stroke of half-time Sean De Silva's thunderous effort was saved by the Dominican goalkeeper Raleighson Pascal before the resulting corner came off the woodwork.
T&T started the second-half in typical style, throwing numbers into attack and occupying Dominica's half for long periods but the goals wouldn't come as the hosts lived dangerously and looked to pounce on the fast break. With his team needing goals and time running out the T&T coach Angus Eve introduced Caesar and within five minutes he found the target to double the lead, while Marcus Joseph extended the lead to 3-0 in the 80th minute as T&T inched to within one goal of achieving its feat. Caesar came up big, delivering the goods with another clinical finish in the 83rd minutes to secure the 4-0 margin of victory. Speaking after the match Eve said, "It's a tremendous victory for the team and the players deserve full credit for their efforts tonight. It was not easy needing to win by four goals and then going into the break at 1-0 at half time," "It was a tough hurdle to cross but we never gave up hope. We believed in ourselves and we kept at it. The guys knew we had a job to take care of and the coaching staff would like to thank them for the way they went about it.
"It's never easy, especially when you are not taking chances and then having to go down to the wire. But we kept our nerves and thankfully we did what was required of us and now we have to keep on building for the next stage of the tournament," Eve added. T&T now joins Cuba in the CFU final round to be played in November at a venue to be determined. The top two teams will move on to the CONCACAF final round in the US in early 2012. Had the scores remained 3-0 in T&T's favour, they would have had to meet Curacao in a one-match playoff on Sunday to determine the group winners, but team captain Sheldon Bateau said his boys were determined to get the desired result. "This is a big victory for us tonight. I told the guys big times or no times," skipper Bateau said. "But this is only half the journey. We have another round to finish and then it's on to CONCACAF."
The T&T team will return home today. Today, Haiti will meet host St Kitts/Nevis to determine the winner of Group D with both teams locked on six points each. However, the Haitians have a better goal-difference of plus-three to St Kitts/Nevis plus-two and would advance with a draw. Antigua and Barbuda meets St Lucia in the other Group B match. The other first round group will see Suriname hosting Group A with Jamaica, St Vincent & The Grenadines and Cayman Islands from August 3 to 7.
Final Standings
Team P W D L F A Pts
T&T 3 2 1 0 6 1 7
Curaçao 3 2 1 0 5 1 7
Grenada 3 1 0 2 2 3 3
Dominica 3 0 0 3 0 8 0
T&T team:
1.Andre Marchan (GK), 3.Mekeil Williams, 4.Sheldon Bateau (capt), 5.Aquil Selby, 6.Leslie Russell, 8.Uriah Bentik, 11.Sean De Silva (12.Jayson Joseph 68th), 14.Marcus Joseph, 15.Kareem Moses, 17.Kaydion Gabriel (Jeromie Williams 77th), 16.Cameron Roget (9.Trevin Caesar 66th).
Unused Subs: 2.Aubrey David, 18.Zane Coker, 7.Phillip Borde.
Coach: Angus Eve.
