TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO youngster Nkosi Blackman has revealed that Dwight Yorke thought he was on his way to Middlesbrough.
The West Indian rookie met up with his compatriot during a trial spell with Manchester United, and admits the former Aston Villa striker believed he would bump into Blackman again, when the midfielder headed for a training stint at The Riverside.
Blackman, who arrived in England with Jerol Forbes and Kenwyne Jones, was delighted with the experience, while Forbes claims Boro want him to return to have another look at his talents.
"It was a little cold at Manchester," the St Benedict's College student stated. "But we got along alright.
"The guys there were not giving us the ball too much, and we couldn't hold the ball and show off anything. We had to more or less fight on our own.
"Dwight Yorke would come and say: 'You guys make sure you take care of my Trini brothers.
"The professional players were very cool and kind to us. Gary Neville, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Juan Sebastian Veron and Dwight all came and spoke to us on the second day.
"They gave us some jerseys, and Dwight gave us some funds that he had on him at the time, and that was very nice.
"He told us he would meet us up at Middlesbrough, but he didn't sign the deal.
"Sir Alex Ferguson also came and spoke to us and told us to enjoy ourselves and make the best of the experience."
Yorke saw a proposed move to Teesside collapse when he was unable to agree personal terms, and he has instead pledged to fight for his future at Old Trafford.
As for Forbes, he is hopeful of earning a contract with Middlesbrough, managed by former United assistant boss Steve McClaren.
"Boro was a little warmer and we performed much better there," he told the Trinidad and Tobago media.
"We had a lot of the ball. We played some training games and were scoring in most of the matches as well."