The opening Stage II matches of the CFU Men’s U-17 Qualifiers began with Cuba and Trinidad & Tobago’s completing convincing victories over Bermuda and St. Kitts & Nevis respectively at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya on Wednesday morning.
Cuba kicked-off Stage II with a 3-1 victory over Bermuda while hosts T&T toppled St Kitts/Nevis 8-0 in the second game of the double header.
Cuba dominated the first half with Daniel Saez opening their score sheet in the 18th minute while Cuban striker, Dairon Perez, scored a double in the 33rd and 44th minutes to wrap up the first-half.
In the second half, the Bermuda team missed quite a few opportunities at goal, however, they did manage to capitalize on one, through Zeiko Lewis.
In the second match, T&T totally outplayed the St. Kitts and Nevis outfit The first half was fairly even play with the locals scoring only once, early on, in the 8th minute through Kiel Pierre.
St. Kitts & Nevis goalkeeper Micheal Perez was sent off in the 37th minute for dissent against the referee and his team did well to finish the first 45 minutes without giving up any further goals.
The home team maximized on its one player advantage. T&T’s Shackiel Henry proved to be too much for the St. Kitts & Nevis defence as he scored five of the eight in the 61st, 66th, 73rd, 84th and 91st minutes.
Garvin Samaroo was the other scorer in the 50th minute and Glen Sutton got the other item in the 77th.
Matches will continue on Friday 20th and Sunday 22nd August at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya, Trinidad at 3pm and 5pm. Tickets cost TT20.00 for adults and TT10.00 for kids under 10 years old.
The Group winner and runner-up automatically qualify to the CONCACAF U-17 Finals to be held in February 2011. (CFU. Aug 18,2010)
MATCH DAY 1 of 3
09:00 Cuba 3-1 Bermuda
Goal Scorers: CUB – (11) Daniel Luis Saez 18”, (9) Dairon Perez 33”, 44”; BER – (10) Zeiko Lewis 70”
11:00 Trinidad & Tobago 8-0 St. Kitts & Nevis
Goal Scorers: TRI – (17) Kiel Pierre 8”; (11) Garvin Samaroo 50”; (9) Shackiel Henry 61”, 66”, 73”, 84”, 91; (16) Glen Sutton 77”
Henry nets five as TT rout St Kitts U17s 8-0.
By JOEL BAILEY (T&T Newsday).
SHACKIEL HENRY netted five goals, all in the second half, as Trinidad and Tobago trounced St Kitts/Nevis 8-0 at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya yesterday.
This game was a Group “E” encounter, of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Final Round Qualifiers, for the 2011 FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Mexico.
Kiel Pierre, Garvin Samaroo and Glenn Sutton also got their names on the scoresheet for the Ross Russell-coached squad, against a St Kitts/Nevis outfit who were a player short for the majority of the match.
However, Trinidad and Tobago struggled to find any rhythm and cohesion in their play, and missed a host of chances, will have to improve tremendously if they are be considered worthy contenders for the World Cup.
In fact, the hosts only looked threatening in the second half, with the St Kitts/Nevis players fading badly under the midday heat (the officials decided to use brief water-breaks once in each half), and with a numerical disadvantage after goalkeeper Michael Perez was sent off in the 35th minute by referee Enrico Wijngaarde of Suriname.
Trinidad and Tobago needed eight minutes to break the deadlock, as captain Karl Muckette found Pierre on the right flank and the midfielder, unmarked, drilled his right-footer to the right of the outstretched Perez.
And Perez’ game ended shortly before the half, when he was shown a red card for a sliding tackle on Henry, outside the penalty box, as the striker chased a ball down the left flank.
Replacement goalie Keron Michael then looked on as Muckette’s freekick went wide of the mark.
The scoring resumed in the 47th, as Samaroo met a low pass from left- back Nicholas Marcano and shot through the legs of the advancing Michael.
Striker Henry got in the act in the 62nd, racing past two defenders and hitting to the left of Michael while, five minutes later, he outmuscled St Kitts/Nevis captain and central defender Clyde Mitchum, rounded Michael and stroked his left-footer into the open net.
Henry completed his hat-trick in the 73rd, as he stayed on-side, after collecting a ball from Sutton, moved past Michael and, once again, placed his left-footer into the empty goal.
While his teammates continued to misfire in front of goal, Henry was terrorising the opponents’ defence, and he had a part to play in Trinidad and Tobago’s sixth item.
In the 78th, Michael came out the penalty box to block a through pass to Henry, but the striker picked up the loose ball and struck the uprights. Sutton was on hand to drill the loose ball home, inside the six yard box.
Henry got his fourth in the 84th, with a leaping header from a left-sided cross, and in stoppage time, he drilled a shot beyond the reach of Michael to complete the rout.
Trinidad and Tobago will tackle Cuba today, at Macoya, from 5 pm, while Bermuda and St Kitts/Nevis will each be seeking their first point of the tournament when they square off two hours earlier.
Group ‘‘F’’ (the dates and venue are yet to be finalised), will comprise Jamaica, Haiti, Guyana and Barbados.
The top two finishers in each group, along with the best third-place side, will qualify for next year’s CONCACAF Under-17 Championships.
Teams -
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO: Quesi Weston; Dario Holmes, Damani Richards, Nicholas Marcano, Tarik Nicholls; Jomal Williams, Neil Benjamin, Kiel Pierre (Glenn Sutton 66th), Karl Muckette (capt) (Tevonne Morris 67th); Garvin Samaroo (Dwight Quintero 80th), Shackiel Henry.
ST KITTS/NEVIS: Michael Perez; Clyde Mitchum (capt), Javier Gaiton, T’Koi Huggins (Rasshede Harris 65th), Vidal Hendrickson; Donroy Liburd, Akimba Lawrence (Keron Michael 37th), Kimaree Rogers, Khyron Phillip; Glenroy Samuel, Tulmal Nisbett (Giovanni Claxton 60th).
Henry puts five on St Kitts-Nevis.
By Ian Prescott (T&T Express).
"The goals were great. It is always good to start a tournament with eight goals, but the game was a little lacklustre for us," head coach Ross Russell said following Trinidad and Tobago's 8-0 whipping of 10-man St Kitts-Nevis in a Caribbean Football Union qualifier for the 2011 FIFA Under-17 World Cup yesterday at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Macoya.
St Benedict's College striker Shackiel Henry (62nd, 67th, 75th, 85th & 90th) was T&T's most prolific marksman, getting five second half goals
But like teammates Garvin Samaroo (St Anthony's College) and Caledonia AIA striker Jomal "Pebe" Williams, Henry missed far more than he scored. Samaroo (47th), San Juan Jabloteh's Kiel Pierre (sixth) and W Connection's Glen Sutton (78th) also netted for T&T.
"Eight goals scored might not show that we missed a lot but I know that we missed a lot," Russell admitted afterwards. "I feel it's complacency.
The game was so easy and chances were coming so quickly, that people started to take it for granted. As coaches we have to look at everything and go back to the drawing board. We have to do a lot of finishing in the future."
Russell expects a better showing when T&T take on Bermuda in their second match tomorrow from 5 p.m. at the Marvin Lee Stadium, before ending the series on Sunday against Cuba. Cuba, though, looked like a team which will trouble St Kitts/Nevis.
The Cubans, expected to be T&T's main rivals, began the tournament by beating Bermuda 3-1. Dairon Perez (33rd & 44th) netted a brace for Cuba, while Daniel Luis Saez put the Spanish-speaking Caribbean footballers ahead in the 18th minute. Bermuda got a 70th minute consolation goal through their number 10 Zeiko Lewis.
The well-attended second match saw T&T leading by just one goal at the end of the first half, Kiel Pierre putting the junior Soca Warriors into a sixth minute lead, taking a through ball from QRC midfielder Duane Muckett and efficiently slapping a low shot into the far corner from the left of the penalty area.
St Kitts/Nevis had one good chance and looked to steal a shock lead in the opening minutes when striker Tulmal Nisbett bore down on goal. But T&T defender Dario Holmes put in an excellent sliding tackle to stop him.
Afterwards came a series of T&T misses, including when Henry beat goalie Michael Perez to the ball but totally mis-kicked as he attempted to put the ball in the net. Williams had the keeper at his mercy three times and put the ball wide, while Samaroo also turned the ball over an open goal.
St Lucia lost their keeper Perez in the 37th minute after he was issued a red card by Suriname referee Enrico Wijngaarde after he took down Henry atop the penalty area. And when Samaroo doubled the score in the 47th, it looked like the floodgates would open.
With St Kitts/Nevis a man short and wilting under the hot mid-day sun, Henry finally began scoring, first hitting down the middle for his first in the 62nd and then twice rounding substitute keeper Kevin Dodds to score.
W Connection's Glen Sutton tucked in a rebound for T&T's sixth goal in the 78th. Henry put in a close up header in the 85th and also scored his fifth in added-on time.
"We played not up to our full potential, we could give a bit more. I know the guys, we have been working for eight months," Russell said. But I think that the weather told on both teams, particularly on the other team more than us."
T&T Line-Up: - Tarik Nicholls, Nicholas Marcano, Dario Holmes, Damani Richards, Neil Benjamin, Duane Muckette (Tevonne Morris 66th), Shackiel Henry, Jomal Williams, Garvin Samaroo (Dwight Quintero 80th), Kiel Pierre (Glenn Sutton 65th), Quesi Weston.
Cautions: - Damani Richards 46th, Duane Muckette 53rd.