AS the Fifa-appointed normalisation committee gets set to release its control of the TT Football Association's (TTFA) on March 31, 2024, former Strike Squad player Brian Williams hopes the incoming governing body can handle its own affairs and show competence once a new board is installed.
Appointed in March 2020, the normalisation committee received its second extension in February 2023 as Fifa said its mandate had not been fulfilled. On Thursday, the Robert Hadad-led normalisation committee made arguably one of its biggest calls since being in office, as they extended the contract of men's football team coach Angus Eve well past its own expiry date, with a deal until December 31, 2025.
Williams is in agreement with the extension as he said the team has made improvements with Eve, who "took over under difficult circumstances from Terry Fenwick'' in 2021.
Asked about the normalisation committee's decision to award a two-year contract despite their impending departure from office, Williams said, "This is the business of the normalisation committee and the TTFA. They will have that responsibility to put things in place as best as possible to be able to satisfy the TTFA membership.
"As much as I am an advocate for us running our own business and putting the TTFA in place, we have to be realistic," Williams told Newsday.
Under the normalisation committee, Williams said T&T have been able to compete in "most of our international competitions" and have been able to meet other requirements.
"In order for us to put the football in our own hands, we must be able to do that efficiently. If not, we might want the normalisation committee to continue. If (Fifa) puts the affairs of football back in our hands and we are not competent enough to run our football in the right way, it does not make no sense because we have seen the nosedive of how low our football reached in the past."
Williams said the national senior team is not solely about Eve or the TTFA, and he said the various aspects of administration, facilities management, coaching and player development must be of the highest possible standard for the on-field product to flourish.
"(The national team) cannot be (about) Angus Eve alone. There must be a collective approach within corporate T&T and throughout T&T as a whole.
"We have to be realistic about our work and not let football go in that direction as we have experienced in the past few years. Our football must have some meaning and purpose so people could be willing to put their time into it and take it very seriously. Sport is a serious approach. It can no longer be about recreation or whatever."
The normalisation committee had been mandated to establish a debt repayment plan implementable by the TTFA, review and amend the TTFA statutes (and other regulations where necessary) and to conduct elections of a new TTFA executive committee for a four-year mandate.
In September 2022 Justice Devindra Rampersad approved a debt repayment proposal filed by Maria Daniel, the trustee acting on behalf of the TTFA’s FIFA-appointed normalisation committee.
According to the TTFA, there were 299 creditors listed in the trustee’s repayment proposal with a total unsecured debt of TT$84.5 million.
The normalisation committee has had its share of detractors though with the major complaint being the lack of transparency and communication with stakeholders, including players.
RESULTS ON THE PITCH
Like Williams, veteran T&T defender Radanfah Abu Bakr said Eve deserved his contract extension. Abu Bakr said the team showed grit and determination in the 2023/24 Concacaf Nations League A campaign and he believes the contract was justified based on the Soca Warriors' results in that competition, which led to a maiden journey to the quarter-final and the upcoming Copa America 2024 play-in game versus Canada on March 23.
In August 2023, the TTFA extended Eve's contract with the Soca Warriors to March 2024. With the latest extension, the T&T head coach is currently set to lead the Soca Warriors through their Fifa 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign.
The 36-year-old Abu Bakr featured for T&T at the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup when Eve initially took charge of the team on an interim basis.
"We got to the quarter-finals of the (Nations League) and we are one game away from the Copa America. The only thing bigger than that is the World Cup. That is huge," Abu Bakr told Newsday.
"This is obviously on the back of an under par – to put it mildly – (2023) Gold Cup campaign. I think (Eve) will admit it was very disappointing. His job was on the line for sure, but to bounce back in the manner he did to get the results the team managed was phenomenal really. You can see an upwards trajectory from the team and that is really heartening."
Abu Bakr said T&T were fortunate to avoid playing eventual group-winners Panama in the Nations League due to an unusual Swiss-style format and he also said T&T played Curacao during a period where they were experiencing internal issues. However, he said the Warriors earned their keep with respective 3-2 wins against El Salvador and Guatemala.
"That resolve to go out there and battle and fight for the flag has been a feature of the team post-Gold Cup," Abu Bakr said.
Abu Bakr said the "football has not been pretty all the time," but he praised the fighting spirit and character of the squad.
"Credit to (Eve), the staff and the players. There is still a lot to improve on obviously, but it is a results-oriented game and we got some really fantastic results in the Nations League."