It has been labelled the "Group of Death" of the Digicel Caribbean Cup qualifying tournament but coach Russell Latapy has all intention of T&T emerging the top team in Group F with the support of local fans. He made this clear at the launch of Second Round of the tournament which is being hosted here. It starts this afternoon at the Mannie Ramjohn Stadium in Marabella. The "Soca Warriors" will feature in the second match of a double-header against St Vincent and the Grenadines, from 7.30 pm. The opening encounter will be between Haiti and Guyana at 5 pm. From the four-team tournament, the top two will qualify for the eight-team Finals in Martinique from November 26 - December 5. "I am looking on to Martinique, for us to play in the Finals. We are looking for home advantage so I am asking fans to give full support to the team," said Latapy, in his traditional cool and collective manner.
The second round of the Digicel Cup was previously slated to kick off at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo but was switched to the Marabella venue to facilitate a entertainment event. Latapy is not making the change the venue an issue despite having conducted much of his practice sessions at the Hasely Crawford Stadium. "My job is to get the players focused on playing no matter where the venue is," said Latapy. "We are satisfied with the surface and expect decent playing conditions. Anyway, both teams will be playing at the same venue." St Vincent and the Grenadines coach Samuel Carrington also anticipates a good showing from his young team. "It is going to be a good competition," said Carrington "We have a young group and will have seven starters about 20 years old. We will be looking to use this opportunity to make a statement for ourselves."
Latapy has also stuck with a youthful team which includes overseas quartet of Puerto Rico Islanders' Kendall Jagdeosingh, his clubmate Keon Daniel, DC United's Julius James and Yohance Marshall of LA Galaxy. "We got rid of the older heads because I am looking towards the future and for this we must look to the young players," said Latapy. "The general public do not think our last couple of results as being good but we are playing closer to the way that I want the team to be playing." Already qualifying for the Finals are the host (Martinique), defending champion Jamaica, Grenada and Guadeloupe. Latapy went on to stress though, that the most important factor in tonight's match is that the team gets home support. "Fans come out and give support."
Soca Warriors Squad
Goalkeepers: Jan-Michael Williams, Marvin Phillip.
Defenders: Julius James, Yohance Marshall, Kern Cupid, Daniel Cyrus, Joevin Jones.
Midfielders: Clyde Leon, Trent Noel, Densill Theobald, Hughton Hector, Keon Daniel, Hayden Tinto, Anthony Wolfe, Lester Peltier, Kendall Jagdeosingh.
Forwards: Devon Jorsling, Jamal Gay, Kerry Baptiste, Shahdon Winchester.
Group F fixtures
Venue: Mannie Ramjohn Stadium, Marabella:
Today:
Haiti vs Guyana, 5 pm
T&T vs SVG, 7.30pm
Thursday
SVG vs Haiti, 5pm
T&T vs Guyana, 7.30pm
Saturday
Guyana vs SVG, 4pm
T&T vs Haiti, 6.30pm