"(On Sunday) I was part of a ceremony that honoured (the 1973 and 1989) teams of the past and rightly so for setting the foundation for our football success," said ex-Trinidad and Tobago football star Angus Eve. "But we (the 1991 national under-20 team) also played a part in putting Trinidad and Tobago's football on the world map. What about us?"
On June 15, as the "Soca Warriors" challenged England in Germany 2006 World Cup action at Nuremberg, the television commentator neglected to mention that it was also the 15th anniversary of Trinidad and Tobago's first appearance in a FIFA tournament.
In 1991, the national under-20 squad became the first member of the English-speaking Caribbean to qualify for a World Cup tournament and they debuted with a 2-0 loss to Australia in Braga, Portugal.
After the traumatic end to the "Strike Squad's" 1990 senior World Cup tournament, the teenagers' success suggested a bright future for local football but it did not materialise in the way they expected.
Coach Bertille St Clair received the Humming Bird Gold but the players went unrewarded by the government and the local football administration.
The road to Portugal began in November 1989-just weeks after the country had mourned the Strike Squad's inability to win a spot for the 1990 Italia World Cup. Youth team captain Dwight Yorke, already a key senior player, asked the media not to refer to the squad as the "Junior Strike Squad" in a bid to separate them from such a painful memory and they were subsequently dubbed the "Soca Babes".
The Babes swept through the Caribbean qualifying phase with an avalanche of goals while Yorke, who was just signed by England top flight club Aston Villa, and Eve earned individual honours.
In the CONCACAF qualifying rounds, Trinidad and Tobago topped a group that included El Salvador and Canada and bounced back from an opening defeat to Mexico in the final round to beat the United States-a Jerren Nixon goal ensured a maiden World Cup qualifying win against the US-and hosts Guatemala.
The players received a heroic welcome home and the country's dreams went into overdrive when they beat the Brazil youth team 4-2 in their final World Cup warm-up match at the National Stadium before heading to Europe.
In retrospect, the Babes' historic win against Brazil might have been their undoing. The expectations were tremendous when they debuted in Braga and, although they were goalless at half-time, T&T eventually succumbed 2-0.
A 6-0 thrashing from Egypt and a 4-0 defeat to the Soviet Union rounded off their stay in Portugal. The closest St Clair's boys came to a goal was when Eve hit the post while Yorke was forced to drop into midfield to receive the ball.
"Australia and the Soviet Union went on to make the semi-finals," said team goalkeeper Michael McComie. "So, statistically speaking, we were in the hardest group. People also forget that England, Spain and Argentina also went out in the first round."
It was the last time the players saw each other as a team. The squad was disbanded when they returned to Trinidad and St Clair returned to his Tobago home.
"When we came back," said former defender Roger Henry, "it was just 'hard luck, better luck next time'. We never felt like we got the appreciation (we deserved)."
There were individual success stories. Yorke went on to become the Caribbean's most famous player after a trophy-laden stint with English Premiership giants, Manchester United, and led the Warriors out at the Germany World Cup.
St Clair guided the senior squad through the early qualifying rounds for the 2006 World Cup and helped T&T to its first semi-final place at the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup as well as two Caribbean Cup titles.
Eve went on to set a national record 117 international appearances while Clayton Ince, who shared goalkeeping responsibilities with McComie, matched Michael Maurice's record of 9 clean sheets in senior World Cup qualifying fixtures and was a reserve in Germany. Nixon won the Caribbean Player of the Year title once and the Scottish Cup with Dundee United.
But the feeling lingers that the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA)-now the Football Federation-missed a terrific opportunity to nurture a band of gifted teenaged players.
"That is just how the system make up," said Nixon. "Most of the guys were disappointed to achieve what we did and then come back home and "
His voice trailed off.
"I don't really want to get into the politics," he said. "It still makes me feel upset."
Perhaps belated recognition for their historical journey to Portugal might help soothe the hurt although the players learned to live with the slight. Memories of a fantastic month competing alongside the likes of Portugal's Luis Figo, Brazil's Roberto Carlos, England's Andy Cole and Australia's Mark Bosnich are still cherished.
"I was fortunate enough to go to Germany for the (2006) World Cup," said McComie. "And watching those games just brought the memories flooding back. It is a feeling that never goes away and it was amazing how the memories were as clear as day."
It is just as well because, apparently, everyone else has forgotten.