U-23s end their Bermudan tour with a 1-1 draw

After some ten minutes neither team has tested the goalkeepers, however some six minutes later Jean Luc Rochford had a shot from some 30 yards fly into the back of the net beating a diving Daniel Johnson. In the 20th minute Johnson got his fingers to tip a drive from Rochford over the crossbar. In the 38th minute Johnson failed to collect a through ball cleanly and Jamal Clarance was able to take control of the ball but Ajani Gibbons was able clear he ball before Clarance could get a shot off.

Click Here to see the Full Bermuda Under 23’s & Trinidad Under 23’s Half Time Stats

In the 51st minute Bermuda equalized, Devraer Tankard beat two Trinidad players to the ball on the half way line and ran into the box and his cross was put away by Nahki Wells. In the 80th minute Trinidad substitute Stephen Campbell had a shot turned over the crossbar by Johnson. A hard fought game came to an end with Trinidad going unbeaten over the three matches, finishing with two wins and one draw.

Click Here to see the Full Bermuda Under 23’s & Trinidad Under 23’s Full Time Stats

T&T: Andre Marchan, Daneil Cyrus, Mikeil Williams, Nicholas Walker, Jovin Jones (Jevon Morris 63rd), Micah Lewis, Leston Paul, Jean-Luc Rochford, Marcus Joseph, (Stephen Campbell 46th) Trent Lougheed, Jamal Juma Clarence (Jerrel Britto 58th).

Bermuda bring in the New Year with deserved draw.
By Josh Ball (The Royal Gazette).

Nahki Wells scored Bermuda's first goal of the New Year as the Under-23s battled their way to a deserved draw against Trinidad & Tobago at the National Sports Centre yesterday.

Wells, whose man-of-the match performance saw him cover more ground than almost any other player on the pitch, struck early in the second half of a game in which neither side ever really settled into any kind of rhythm.

The goal cancelled out Jean Luc Rochford's 16th minute rocket, the highlight of an otherwise tepid affair which was characterised by sloppy passing, niggly fouls, and an uneven physical match-up that exposed Bermuda as just a little too lightweight for this level of football.

That isn't to say that the home side weren't aggressive. They battled hard, more often than not illegally, and Antonio Lowe was a rock at the centre of a defence which was vastly improved from the first game.

Their overall shape was better too, however they were let down on occasion by a lack of movement, and a midfield that, Wells aside, was largely annonymous for the majority of yesterday's game.

"I thought Nakhi Wells can play at a higher level than we saw today," said coach Scott Morton. "He has superior technical ability but must learn what we need from him tactically. His ability is endless.

"Defensively we were better than we were in the first game. We changed things around and I felt Antonio Lowe's pace at the back gave us a bit more balance."

Not that Bermuda had to be at their best because the Soca Warriors' hectic schedule of three games in five days finally caught up with them, and at times they struggled to get out of neutral.

Striker Jamal Clarance played on the fringes of the game for most of the hour that he was on the pitch, and while his replacement Jerrel Britto proved more of a threat, the rather disjointed nature of the Trinidad performance often left him without enough support to be truly effective.

They also allowed the home side's rather robust approach to knock them out of their stride, which given that T&T are both taller and stronger than their Bermuda counterparts is something they should never have allowed to happen.

Even so, having taken the lead through Rochford, who reacted quickest when Nicholas Walker's corner came back of the back post and rifled in a shot from 20 yards out, Trinidad would have been confident of picking up their third win of the tour.

However, several half chances aside, they failed to seriously test Bermuda goalkeeper Daniel Johnson for the rest of the half and were made to pay for it soon after the restart.

Some good work by Devrae Tankard down the left saw him skip past several challenges, glide into the penalty box and play a perfect pass to Wells, who side-footed the ball home from 12 yards out.

Both teams had chances to win the game in the second half. Britto headed straight at Johnson when clean through and Reggie Lambe scuffed a shot he should have done far better with.

In the end though a draw was a fair result, and gives Bermuda a platform on which to build for the rest of the year.

Bermuda: D.Johnson, D.Tankard (R.Purnell, 80), A.Lowe, A.Gibbons, R.Lee (R.Trott, 73), S.Hollis (A.Russell, 65), S.Darrell (S.Brown, 62), R.Lambe, N.Wells (T.Tucker, 81), K.Bean, A.Simmons (A.Grant, 86). Sub not used: T.Bell.

Trinidad & Tobago: A.Marchan, J.Jones (J.Morris, 63), D Cyrus, M.Williams, M.Lewis, M.Joseph (S Campbell, 46), N.Walker, L.Paul, JL Rochford, T.Lougheed, J.Clarance (J.Britto, 57). Booked: Rochford, Britto, Paul.

Referee: A.Francis

Man of the match: N. Wells

'We'll win at home' warns Trini coach.
By: Stephen Wright (Royal Gazette).

Coach Zoran Vranes praised Bermuda Under-23s for being tough opponents yesterday but insisted they would be well beaten when they visited Trinidad later this year.

Vranes said he was not overly disappointed about his team's failure to complete a clean sweep after being held to a draw by Bermuda in the final match of the three-game tour.

He believed Trinidad's victory over Premier Division champions Devonshire Cougars two days earlier had taken its toll on his players who he thought appeared tired during yesterday's match.

"Bermuda played a bit better today," said Vranes, "but I am not too disappointed we did not win. We finished undefeated which, of course, is what we expected ... if we play them in Trinidad later this year we will definitely beat them.

"It was a tough schedule for us, playing three games in five days and I think today our players showed they are not fit enough."

The Serbian, who led Trinidad to the Under-20 World Cup in Egypt in September, said his team had been without three key players yesterday because of injuries.

"We were missing about three players who picked up injuries. We only came with a squad of 17players and we tried to give them all a game. They all benefitted from this trip."

He also critisised Bermuda referee Anthony Francis for allowing yesterday's game to be played in an overly physical fashion.

"I thought the referee allowed both teams to play a bit rougher than he should, but that is okay as well."

Calderon encouraged by Under-23 performance
By Stephen Wright (The Royal Gazette)

Bermuda Football Association (BFA) president Richard Calderon believes Bermuda's encouraging draw against Trinidad will serve as a major psychological boost for the players and proves the Island can hold their own against the Caribbean's best nations.

Calderon said it had been imperative for Bermuda Under-23s to bounce back with a positive result having suffered a 5-2 defeat in the opening game of this week's double-header against the region's top dogs.

He also revealed more international friendly matches were on the cards with Bermuda Under-23s set to travel to Trinidad for a three-game tour later this year.

"This was a significant result for us," said Calderon. "Although Trinidad are ahead of us I do not think they are three goals ahead of us. It was critical for us to finish with a good performance and result – I am absolutely thrilled for our players.

"This game was a far better indication of how we can play. We eliminated the mental lapses of concentration that cost us the first game and corrected our mistakes."

The BFA president said it was vital they provided Bermuda's Under-23s with tough matches in the build-up the CAC Games in July, and envisions them competing against powerhouses from the region such as Honduras, Costa Rica and the United States in the not too distant future.

"We want to keep on testing ourselves against top teams like Trinidad," Calderon said. "They are the benchmark at the moment and it is far more beneficial to play against them rather than some of the lesser Islands. That is where we want to be and I would like to see up against teams like Costa Rica, Honduras and the US."

Despite luring the Caribbean's best young team to the Island,Trinidad's trip failed to attract the number of spectators the BFA required to balance their books.

They needed 1,500 fans for each of the three matches to break even and Calderon said he was disappointed more fans did not turn up to support Bermuda's most promising young players.

"I was a little disappointed with the turn-out from our supporters," he said. "I would have loved to see more Bermudians at the National Sports Centre to support our team. We needed 1,500 each game to break even and we were nowhere near that.

"The upside is Trinidad and Tobago will now have to reciprocate and host us for three games sometime in the first quarter of 2010.

"I think the whole exercise had proved very worthwhile though, and I was pleased we were able to support Devonshire Cougars in their build-up to the CONCACAF Champions League."