Having secured their berth in the Caribbean Football Union Women’s Under 17 Finals, this country’s National Under 17 Women’s team will have an extended stay in St Kitts/Nevis due to delays caused by a Tropical Storm Warning.
T&T completed a 4-0 victory over the hosts on the island of Nevis on Wednesday night. Following the match, the team was able to arrive in St Kitts via ferry transportation from Nevis and is now based at the Bird Rock Beach Hotel. Currently the RL Bradshaw International Airport is closed until further notice.
This therefore means that the team, comprising of 19 players and six staff members has had to extend its stay at the Bird Rock Beach Hotel. TTFA National Teams operations manager William Wallace has confirmed that with assistance from the Sportt Company of Trinidad and Tobago, all additional expenses for accommodation and meals for the extended days will be taken care of to ensure all members of the T&T contingent are lodged at the hotel.
“We are on top of the situation and at this time, just after 4pm, communication between the FA and the hotel along with Sportt has taken place. The Sportt Company has committed to making the payments and have already requested the wire transfer information from the hotel to ensure the team is accommodated for the extra days,” Wallace stated.
“We have been informed that the CFU will not take care of the additional days and therefore, it is now the responsibility of the member association to ensure its national team is accommodated.”
Team manager Lyndelle Hoyte-Sanchez said the contingent was safe and in good spirits.
“We are safe and being taken good care of by the hotel manager and staff. We wish to thank the FA and the Sportt Company for its assistance in the matter. At this time, our team staff is also ensuring that the players are in good spirits. Our main objective was to come here and do well in the tournament and we have done this. Our focus now will be the CFU Finals in Puerto Rico. Once the airport reopens and we can get on the next available flight, then we should be out of St Kitts by this weekend,” Hoyte Sanchez told TTFA Media.
This is second Tropical storm warning for St Kitts/Nevis within a week after the “Danny” forced a delay in T&T’s second match against British Virgin Islands which T&T won 8-0 on Tuesday morning. The Rajesh Latchoo-coached team completed wins in its three games to top the group with nine points. The CFU Finals will take place in Puerto Rico in November leading up to the CONCACAF Finals and the 2016 FIFA Under 17 Women’s World Cup in Jordan.