Two-time defending Guinness Street Football Challenge regional champions, Trinidad and Tobago (T&T), drew the tougher of the two groups for this year’s championship showdown when the draw for group placement took place at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston, Jamaica, on Friday.
Aruba, Barbados, St Kitts and St Lucia will battle each other in Group B while Dominica did not show as a result of flight problems.
Speaking to the teams during the briefing, Guinness Trinidad marketing manager Melicia Wilson-Aquing said: “We want you to appreciate what Guinness has brought to the table by providing this platform for you to showcase your skills.
“We know you all want to win because that is what you would have all played for but at the end of the day there can only be one winner,” Wilson-Aquing continues, “What we want is for you to have good, clean fun in a responsible manner.”
The tournament officially started yesterday with the opening ceremony at 5 p.m. (6 p.m. T&T time).
Day 1 of competition yesterday saw each team playing three matches to decide who their quarterfinal opponent will be. Day 2 action begins today with the quarterfinals where the winner of Group A will meet the fourth place team from Group B; Group A runner-up faces Group B’s third-place team; Group A’s third-place team against Group B’s runner-up; and the fourth-place team from Group A takes on the winner of Group B.
The quarterfinals will be followed by the two semi-finals; the third place playoff and the championship fixture.
Each team is allotted a 45-minute training session, at staggered timeframes starting from 10 a.m., at the match venue at the Waterfront in Kingston, on both days of competition.
Group A: Touches (Trinidad and Tobago), Slash Dash (Jamaica), Sparta Boss (Guyana) and White Squall (St Vincent)
Group B: Soccer Giants (Aruba), Arm Units (Barbados), Veterans (St Lucia) and Rams Village Superstars (St Kitts)