THE point was made in this column one month ago about the trickery of announcing World Cup warm-up matches then cancelling at the last moment for one reason or the other.
The example we used then was abortion of the pre-Costa Rica warm-up because a Central American opponent was in “the same group as TnT” in the lesser important Gold Cup.
This has been an annual routine.
And we could be saying today, “I told you so,” because there has since been another cancellation and an even poorer excuse.
Football’s administrators announced that they “were informed” El Salvador was “unable to travel for next Wednesday’s friendly international because of Hurricane Adrian”.
It is a major blow because of the importance of this period between dropping eight of a possible nine points in the first three of 10 qualifying matches, and entering a virtual double-header four days apart that can either drive the campaign back on track or derail it entirely.
Remember, the most significant form of activity has been the sacking of a coach and revamping of team management (even if only the faces, not the policy); with the accepted risk of traumatising the players or limiting the new man’s time to learn our culture, work ethic and player capacity.
On-the-field activity was thus crucial not only to keep the team going but to view them under intense pressure against a similar opponent to the two being faced -- Panama on Saturday and Mexico on Wednesday.
Instead, there came this announcement about Hurricane Adrian which must have been extremely devastating, given that it occasioned the cancellation of El Salvador’s flight just inside a week of the scheduled warm-up.
So devastating, it left no hope of another possible flight.
Only the tsunami victims of Asia would have known more destruction.
We sympathise with the people of El Salvador and hope the sarcasm isn’t lost on our readers.
Let us assume now the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (TTFF) is genuine in its intention to stage those matches.
After all, it is the duty of a country’s football administration to provide the necessary tools for success and advancement.
Failure so to do would tantamount to negligence.
For that reason, we must make ourselves believe that there is some genuine desire to stage proper preparation matches.
The rate at which these matches are cancelled for one reason or the other, should be merely likened to Hampton’s routine of enthusiastically declaring which “super” athletes they wish to bring before actually securing the funds to guarantee their participation.
Like Hampton, this has been a yearly routine with the poor, good chaps at TTFF.
Sympathy apart, though, one cannot empathise with the football lords when one considers the level of administration that goes into preparation for these matches, particularly for a World Cup qualifying year.
It would be natural to expect, in any well-structured football nation that a warm-up schedule is drawn up parallel to the qualifying matches and confirmed well in advance.
Having only the desire to play matches, even when they are mentioned months in advance, does not constitute having a schedule, Hamptonites.
You must confirm them first!
That, perhaps, part-explains why TnT can hardly book a nation in the world top 50, given the spontaneity of their request (that and, no doubt, the wrangling over which team gets the bigger cut).
If you ever thought TnT’s football operated under world class administration, consider the words of Bermuda’s coach, Kyle Lightbourne.
But first, I neglected to point out that Bermuda was TnT’s big replacement for a team with the same type of temperament and approach to goal as Panama and Mexico.
That came after the desperation of scheduling a local, then a Peruvian club, and finally announcing (after two straight defeats) that El Salvador won’t be coming because of the threat [our choice of words] of hurricane.
The football lords were caught between glistening the excuse for El Salvador’s non-appearance and part-pardoning the new opponent’s relative inferiority (against whom, nonetheless, victory would have had a bigger impact on crowd attendance in the bigger coming attraction than a third straight defeat).
In their words, other opponents, “among them, Cuba, Paraguay and Norway” were approached and “eventually, it was agreed that Bermuda would face TnT ...”
Do you see our point?
Well, Lightbourne does. His response to the invitation was: “This was a real surprise -- I don’t know if I have seen anything like this happening in football before.
“But it is good for us and we are hoping to make the most of it.
“We are not going to turn down the chance to play the games against a top-class side, even if it has been a bit of a rush to get a squad together.
“You (TnT) have to look at the match in context of (World Cup) preparation but we will be looking to acquit ourselves well and put up the best performance we can.”
As I rest my case, I would like to wish the Warriors best of luck home against Panama and away to Mexico.
Full points, especially against the perceived weaker Panama is absolutely crucial.
The reputation of new coach, Leo Beenhakker, who replaced Bertille St. Clair, is also on the line.