Trinidad and Tobago are CFU queens There is a new darling of Women’s football in the region; Trinidad and Tobago captured the 2013 Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Under 17 title with a hard fought 1-0 victory over host nation Haiti at the Sylvio Cator Stadium. The much anticipated final was played in front of 6800 spectators who braved the inclement weather to witness history as a champion was crowned for the first time in the tournament’s history. Haiti took the attack to the ‘Soca Princesses’ from the opening whistle much to the delight of the boisterous crowd which came armed with musical instruments and dancers ready to burst with excitement at the first Haitian goal. Trinidad, on the other hand started cautiously playing special attention to Haitian playmaker Isnada Lebrun and tournament leading goal scorer Batcheba Louis, as they completely marked them out in the first half. The games first and only goal came in the 40th minute on a play started by midfielder Chevonne John who maintained her balance after bypassing her marker, and relayed the ball to Zoe Swift who then found an open Summer Arjoon in the penalty area and she hit past goalie Jonie Gabriel to give Trinidad a precious 1-0 lead. Haiti stepped up their attack in the second half and Trinidadian goalie Nicolette Craig did well to push a well placed shot from Sherly Jeudy over the uprights in the 55th minute. The Soca Princesses soaked reverted to a full defensive style of play by the 60th minute with one striker and their midfield dropping back to assist the defence in keeping out Louis and her fellow midfielders who liked to operate on the flanks. A risky tactic which paid off for Trinidad coach Marlon Charles, and after some near misses; he leaped into the air at the sound of the final whistle. “The game came down to tactics and being a goal ahead I wanted to preserve that lead. I had a lot of confidence in my defenders and the way they were cutting out the spaces in the midfield. I cannot say if my plan would have changed had Haiti scored, but they didn’t so it’s safe to say that it worked. “I must also thank Haiti for a good game and they played well to reach to the finals,” said Charles. Most Valuable Player of the tournament Summer Arjoon at the podium thanked the people of Haiti for their hospitality and support shown throughout the competition. Haiti’s coach James Morisset applauded Trinidad for a game well played and said his team will now prepare for the CONCACAF Qualifiers. “We learnt a lot from this game and it has prepared us well for the CONCACAF Under 17 qualifiers and who knows maybe we will meet Trinidad again for a rematch,” he said smilingly. In earlier action Puerto Rico took third place at the tournament by defeating Bermuda 2-0, thanks to a brace from Monica Ocasio in the 20th and 70th minute.
Posted on: Mon, 30 Sep 2013 03:53:56 +0000
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