Dennis Lawrence will take his team to the Hasely Crawford Stadium from Tuesday for training sessions ahead of the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Panama and Mexico on March 24th and 28th.
Lawrence conducted a session this morning at Larry Gomes Stadium as Sol Campbell got active with fellow assistant coach Stuart Charles Fevrier. Sessions will be be interchanged between the Stadium mainfield and training pitch going into the Panama affair. The home-based players currently in training will also under a full medical examination with TTFA partner Healthnet and Lab Medica on Wednesday morning.
Lawrence will announce his final squad for the two qualifiers on the weekend but Defence Force forward Jamille Boatswain reflected on his debut goalscoring performance on Friday, saying he didn’t expect to be in line for selection and is now hoping to force his way into Lawrence’s final roster.
“If you had asked me six months ago if I would be in the national team today I would say no,” Boatswain told TTFA Media.
“But with my performances in the League I just kept working and the opportunity came. When coach Lawrence told me before the game that each striker would get thirty minutes in the match, I knew I had to go in and work hard and try to give my best. I think I did okay and well the goals came.
“Yes, it was a bit of a surprise but I am thankful and hopefully now I can continue to work hard, keep learning and developing. I will try to keep it up and hopefully make it into the final team for the World Cup qualifiers,”Boatswain added.
Central FC Midfielder Leston Paul also spoke about the influence Lawrence and Stern John have had on his approach, particularly in Friday’s game.
“Both Dennis and Stern have been encouraging me to play my game which is taking control of the ball. They gave me freedom to play and said okay don’t be afraid to express yourself and go forward because you can do it and if a mistake happens you can recover. That settled me a bit and I think the performance was decent but of course we still have work to do and improvements to make,” Paul added.
Tickets for both World Cup qualifiers are available at Lotto Locations nationwide. They are priced at $300 (covered) and $160 (uncovered) per game up until March 17th and from March 18th to 28th, tickets will be priced at $350 (covered) and $200 (uncovered) per game.
Panama names squad to face T&T on March 24th
Panama Head Coach Hernan Dario Gomez has selected his final squad to face Trinidad and Tobago in next Friday’s 2018 World Cup qualifier at the Hasely Crawford Stadium.
The last time Panama played in Port of Spain in a World Cup qualifier in Port of Spain, T&T came away 2-0 winners with Stern John opening the scoring in the first half and Dennis Lawrence netting the second item after the break. The match was also Leo Beenhakker’s first Word Cup qualifier in charge of the Men’s National Team and this coming fixture will also be Lawrence’s first World Cup qualifier since his appointment as head coach of the T&T Team.
Panama has included a number of returning veterans, including goalkeeper Jaime Penedo; defenders Roman Torres and Felipe Baloy; midfielders Anibal Godoy, Armando Cooper and Alberto Quintero; and forwards Luis Tejada and Blas Perez. Of note is former U.S. international Tony Taylor, who completed a switch to represent Panama. Having beaten Honduras and holding Mexico to a 0-0 draw, Panama has four points and a 1-0-1 mark in the Hex.
Lawrence will announce his final roster on the weekend. Captain for last Friday’s friendly with Barbados, Marvin Phillip said he was pleased with the progress shown by the home-based players in the preparations at the moment.
“I think the team responded well to what the coach emphasised on in the past training sessions. Maybe at times we could played at a quicker rate but It was a good outing, Phillip told TTFA Media.
“So far we’e had a good time training under him. We have a lot of respect towards him and the rest of the staff and I think that is a major factor in the response he is getting from the players. We have a few players coming into the squad next week and it’s just about getting the camaraderie and love gong again and put all our energies into the training and going out there and getting it right in these two games against Panama and Mexico,” Phillip added.
Tickets for both World Cup qualifiers are available at Lotto Locations nationwide. They are priced at $300 (covered) and $160 (uncovered) per game up until March 17th and from March 18th to 28th, tickets will be priced at $350 (covered) and $200 (uncovered) per game.
Panama Team
Goalkeepers:
Jaime Penedo (Dinamo Bucharest), Jose Calderon (Real Cartagena)
Defenders:
Roman Torres (Seattle Sounders), Felipe Baloy (Tauro), Harold Cummings (San Jose Earthquakes), Amir Murillo (New York Red Bulls), Luis Ovalle (Zamora), Adolfo Machado (Houston Dynamo), Fidel Escobar (Sporting Lisbon B), Erick Davis (Dunajska Streda)
Midfielders:
Anibal Godoy (San Jose Earthquakes), Armando Cooper (Toronto FC), Miguel Camargo (NYCFC), Ricardo Avila (Koper), Edgar Barcenas (Tapachula), Gabriel Gomez (Atletico Bucaramanga), Amilcar Henriquez (Arabe Unido), Josiel Nunez (Plaza Amador), Alberto Quintero (Universitario).
Forwards:
Blas Perez (Blooming), Abdiel Arroyo (Danubio), Luis Tejada (Universitario), Tony Taylor (Pacos de Ferreira), Gabriel Torres (Lausanne Sport).