T&T Under-17 footballers will continue their preparations for the Concacaf Championship carded for Jamaica next month with a practice match against 2010 bmobile National Super League double champions T&TEC, today. The match is carded for the Ato Boldon Stadium, Couva from 4 pm. Currently, the T&T team, coach Shawn Cooper is in training four times per week ahead of its group matches versus hosts Jamaica on February 15 and Guatemala two days later 17 in Montego Bay in the group phase of the Concacaf Final Round towards the 2011 Fifa Under-17 World Cup in Mexico later this year. The team was engaged in a training camp in Colombia last November and is also likely to visit Venezuela prior the tournament in Jamaica. Cooper's preparation programme submitted to the T&T Football Federation includes residential camps every weekend and the T&TFF is also making efforts to secure two further international matches prior to the tournament.
Cooper explained that there were some adjustments made to the team's preparation programme. "We had a programme set bearing in mind that the tournament would take place in April but that changed and we've had to readjust our preparations. Currently we are doing our best to prepare the team with everything being condensed into a shorter period but the players are responding well," Cooper said. "This team has loads of talent but it's important that we give them the best opportunities available with international exposure and we've seen this happening and hopefully it can work well in our favour," he added. Cooper said he was currently focusing on his team's defensive ploys.hink if we can avoid that... then we have enough talent in the attacking third to do what is necessary to win matches."
The current 30-man squad will be trimmed to 25 players by weekend before a final 20-man squad is named for the tournament.