And here indeed was Mexico, although not in the Azteca. Figuring this was the easiest game of the lot, the FA decided to forego the altitude advantage and go north to Monterrey, where the fans are known as the loudest and best in the country. The game was a bit of a homecoming for Leo Beenhakker, who in his varied career had coached both Chivas and America. Did he have something up his sleeve? What he needed was a keeper--Clayton Ince, apparently unhappy to be benched against Panama (but didn't he have a sore back?), had walked out of camp. Mexico was missing Rafa Márquez, who had suffered a groin strain against Guatemala, and Salvador Carmona, who was suspended, but that hardly mattered. Beenhakker or no, it was the usual speculation--how many goals are we going to win by?
After the first few minutes, you would have guessed maybe eight. T&T started the same eleven that had beaten Panama, but they were decidedly jittery, and showed gaps, particularly on the left, where Avery John was struggling with Kikín Fonseca. Just about every Mexican attack looked dangerous, and calculator sales were mounting.
But around the 15th minute a funny thing happened. All at once T&T got their balance, and you realized--wait a minute, this is a real football team with a real coach. Beenhakker's tactics were superb: he turned the 4-4-2 into a 6-2-2, with midfielders Densil Theobald on the left and Carlos Edwards on the right dropping all the way back. He stationed Chris Birchall and (let's just call him Aurtis Whitley) Aurtis Whitley in the middle, and let the opponent come on. Lawrence and Andrews were clogging the middle to perfection; the fullbacks, John and Atiba Charles, were moving out to challenge, knowing they had wing midfielders for cover. Mexico, with their patient passing game, had no way through, and it wasn't just because everyone in red was playing defense. Everyone on Dominica had played defense too, and they had given up 18 goals in two games. No, this was a team that knew how to mark, cover, and clear, knew how to play football.
And when T&T got possession, they didn't just boot it long. They played crisp passes out of the back, found the strikers retreating to trap the ball, moved out to execute complex passing sequences, and even threatened once in a while. In the 28th minute Aaron Galindo just got to the ball ahead of Stern John when a goal was in the offing. LaVolpe, no dummy, saw what was up, and in the 36th minute yanked Carmona's replacement, Mario Méndez, for an extra attacker, Alberto Medina, hoping his pace could open up the wing.
It worked, for a bit. On his first touch, Medina forced a corner, and a few minutes later a through ball from Sinha found him slicing in from the right. He rounded Jack, and a goal seemed certain, but on his weaker left foot, didn't get enough on the shot, and Avery John cleared off the line. At the half it was still 0:0, not exactly what had been advertised. Those loud Monterrey fans knew exactly how to respond, too.
In the second half Medina disappeared quickly, and once again the Tri were without ideas, and the Warriors cool and poised on defense. The pace of the game was slow, but the spectacle was mesmerizing: was this really T&T holding off Mexico, getting more confident by the moment? When in the 61st minute a rare mistake left Jaime Lozano open in the box, Kelvin Jack (the third string, remember) dove to the right to save the header. You really thought they were going to do it.
But somehow these things never work out. A minute later LaVolpe made another smart substitution, Ramón Morales, more wing power, for an intermittent Sinha. And shortly afterward he got his reward. With his first touch of the night, Morales slammed a shot from the left side, and Jack left a rebound. Jared Borgetti had slipped behind Lawrence and took the easy tap-in. T&T appealed vehemently for offside, but the replay showed the goal had been legal.
So with about a half hour to go, it was probably over. But then came the most remarkable segment of the game. You'd expect T&T, down a goal, to put the pressure on and attack. But no--they stayed in the same 6-2-2, inviting Mexico to go for more. Who could resist? But 20 minutes later the score was the same, and when in the 80th minute Hector Sam replaced Densil Theobald, suddenly the counterattack looked more dangerous than the attack. In the 84th minute a lovely backheel by John for Sam was just broken up by Osorio. Mexico were on their back foot, and once again a draw actually seemed possible. Alas, in the 88th minute Luís Pérez's shot was blocked by Andrews, the ball came right back to Pérez, and he got the clincher. Once again Jack should have done better--but in any case Mexico deserved a PK, since Andrews had blocked it with his arm.
It had been a landmark performance for Trinidad & Tobago. A hundred years from now, researchers will note that Mexico beat T&T 3:0 at home in the semis and 2:0 at home in the Hexagonal, and assume the games were similar. No way. Last year T&T's most valuable player had been the post. This year, under Beenhakker's guidance, they were a full participant. You could only marvel at the transformation. (And--let's say it very quietly--wonder what might have been if he'd got the job in December rather than March.)
Now say it with me: Trinidad & Tobago have a legitimate chance to qualify for the World Cup. (Hey, that felt good!) No, they're not a great team, and they're fortunate to be in a weak Hexagonal. But under the magic wand of Leo Beenhakker, they are without question competitive in this field. They're short on pace, short on midfield creativity, but long on discipline and tactical sophistication. The performance against Mexico was a wonder: a textbook example of how to play against a stronger team on the road. They didn't get the draw, but they got close, and more importantly, would have deserved the point had they got it. Three worries right now: 1) Keeper: Kelvin Jack isn't good enough to take them to Germany. They need Ince or Hislop. 2) Coordination in attack: at the moment John and Yorke aren't combining terribly well. Maybe Kenwyne Jones will help, or a few more training sessions can make the difference. 3) Schedule: they have only two home games remaining. One is against Mexico on the final day, where an uninterested Tri might drop a point. The other is against Guatemala, which might be the battle for fourth place--but Guatemala's 5:1 win has all but wrapped up the tiebreaker. Not too encouraging? Compared to a couple of months ago, it's 1989 again.