T&T's futsal team got the worst possible start to their campaign ahead of the 2021 CONCACAF Futsal Championship in Guatemala City, next month.
The local unit went down to a heavy 7-1 defeat to the Costa Rican national team in the first of two friendly matches on Tuesday night. And on Wednesday, the T&T team was hoping to redeem itself in a second match against the Costa Ricans at the same venue.
After the warmup match, national coach Constantine Konstin said his team struggled to find their rhythm in the first half but did much better in the second half.
"It was the first opportunity to play in a real futsal game with referees, a clock stopper, it was really an eye-opener. They are really excited and happy that they participated in this first game. They were fired up but they were a little bit nervous at the beginning of the game. They were kind of overwhelmed and they struggled to find a rhythm.
"But in the second half, they really came back really strong. I feel really positive about how the game ended after the second half."
Konstin's men will contest Group A of the qualifiers alongside hosts Guatemala and the Dominican Republic (DR). They face DR on May 4 and Guatemala on May 5.
All matches will be played at the Domo Polideportivo, a venue that has a long history of hosting international futsal competitions, including the 2000 FIFA Futsal World Cup.
Konstin said in the game, his team intended to work on defending man-to-man, applying high pressure, pressing and moving when in possession of the ball, and basically find a rhythm of play, but it all fell flat in the opening half, as the Costa Ricans were superior to them.
In an interview with TTFA Media on Wednesday, Konstin noted that his team had the opportunity to discuss the game at length Wednesday morning and was hoping to redeem themselves in a second game scheduled to play, on Wednesday night.
T&T 14-man Futsal Squad
Che Benny- Belmont - Central FC- ALA
Dylon King- Waterhole, Cocorite- Defence Force- FIXO
Darius Ollivierra- Carenage- Defence Force- PIVO
Willis Plaza -Arima- PIVO
Andre Marchan - Beaucaro Village, Freeport- Defence Force- GK
Adrian Welch- Glencoe- Defence Force-ALA
Jameel Neptune- Waterhole, Cocorite - Central FC- ALA
Mark Ramdeen- Siparia- ALA
Sean De Silva- Cascade- unattached- ALA
Aaron Lester- Morvant- Defence Force- FIXO
Keston George- Woodbrook- La Horquetta Rangers- ALA
Dwight Quintero- Blanchisseuse- Defence Force- PIVO
Keron Cummings- Diego Martin- La Horquetta Rangers -ALA
Kern Caesar- Arouca- GK
SOURCE: T&T Guardian