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JAMAICA TO HOST T&T IN FRIENDLY ON MARCH 26
Trinidad and Tobago’s “Soca Warriors” will square off with Jamaica’s “Reggae Boyz” in a friendly international fixture at the National Stadium in Kingston on March 26.
The match was agreed upon by both the Trinidad and Tobago and the Jamaica Football Federation on the weekend with a view to both teams using it as part of preparations for the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign.
It will be the first meeting of the two teams in almost three years with Jamaica coming away 2-1 winners in a Digicel Cup encounter in February, 2005. There will also be a return fixture at a date to be determined.
March 26 will also see the second leg of the first round of World Cup qualifiers taking place but with both T&T and Jamaica having a first round bye, they will use the opportunity to tune up for their second round ties scheduled for June, 2008.
Both teams are expected to field teams inclusive of their overseas-based professionals. T&T is expected to have more of its overseas-based pros, who have not played for the country since October 2006, back in its team for the Ash Wednesday February 7 friendly against Guadeloupe at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain.
The return game against the “Reggae Boyz” will see former TTFF Technical director and Senior team head coach Rene Simoes returning to Trinidad for the first time since he left the post back in 2002. Simoes was this month re-hired as Jamaica’s technical director and will officially begin his duties on January 5.
The game, which was organized through the efforts of TTFF Special Advisor Jack Warner, should be an interesting match up according to TTFF President Oliver Camps.
“The game comes at an ideal time as both countries will be in the process of getting prepared for the start of their 2010 World Cup qualifying campaigns. We always have a good rivalry with Jamaica and I expect that we will have a team inclusive of our best players to put on a good showing on the day,” Camps told TTFF Media on Sunday.
Jamaica’s Football Federation President Horace Burrell also relayed to the media in Jamaica on Sunday that he was anticipating the affair as it would serve well in his country’s build up programme for the 2010 campaign.
Simoes, who wore the 'Jesus Saves' insignia on the back of his shirt as he guided the Reggae Boyz's on the Road to France campaign in 1998, only once had the chance to face Jamaica as head coach of T&T, in a 2-1 loss in the closing stages of the 2002 World Cup qualfiers. Prior to that he was in charge of Jamaica at a 0-0 draw versus T&T in a friendly shortly after Jamaica’s qualification for the 1998 Finals. Both games were played at the Queen’s Park Oval. .
In the preliminary phase of the World Cup qualifiers, T&T has to get past the winner of the first round tie between Bermuda and Cayman Islands which will be played on February 6 and March 26.
Those winners will clash with T&T in a second round home and away tie on June 14/15 and June 21/22. Once through to the semi-final stage, T&T’s campaign will then continue on August 20 where its possible opponents could be the United States, Cuba and Guatemala. Jamaica meantime, await the winners of the Bahamas/British Virgin Islands before facing a potential semi-final group with Canada, Honduras and Mexico. (Shaun Fuentes, Dec 16, 2007.Photo flashback from past T&T vs Jamaica friendly)
Trinidad and Tobago’s “Soca Warriors” will square off with Jamaica’s “Reggae Boyz” in a friendly international fixture at the National Stadium in Kingston on March 26.
The match was agreed upon by both the Trinidad and Tobago and the Jamaica Football Federation on the weekend with a view to both teams using it as part of preparations for the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign.
It will be the first meeting of the two teams in almost three years with Jamaica coming away 2-1 winners in a Digicel Cup encounter in February, 2005. There will also be a return fixture at a date to be determined.
March 26 will also see the second leg of the first round of World Cup qualifiers taking place but with both T&T and Jamaica having a first round bye, they will use the opportunity to tune up for their second round ties scheduled for June, 2008.
Both teams are expected to field teams inclusive of their overseas-based professionals. T&T is expected to have more of its overseas-based pros, who have not played for the country since October 2006, back in its team for the Ash Wednesday February 7 friendly against Guadeloupe at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain.
The return game against the “Reggae Boyz” will see former TTFF Technical director and Senior team head coach Rene Simoes returning to Trinidad for the first time since he left the post back in 2002. Simoes was this month re-hired as Jamaica’s technical director and will officially begin his duties on January 5.
The game, which was organized through the efforts of TTFF Special Advisor Jack Warner, should be an interesting match up according to TTFF President Oliver Camps.
“The game comes at an ideal time as both countries will be in the process of getting prepared for the start of their 2010 World Cup qualifying campaigns. We always have a good rivalry with Jamaica and I expect that we will have a team inclusive of our best players to put on a good showing on the day,” Camps told TTFF Media on Sunday.
Jamaica’s Football Federation President Horace Burrell also relayed to the media in Jamaica on Sunday that he was anticipating the affair as it would serve well in his country’s build up programme for the 2010 campaign.
Simoes, who wore the 'Jesus Saves' insignia on the back of his shirt as he guided the Reggae Boyz's on the Road to France campaign in 1998, only once had the chance to face Jamaica as head coach of T&T, in a 2-1 loss in the closing stages of the 2002 World Cup qualfiers. Prior to that he was in charge of Jamaica at a 0-0 draw versus T&T in a friendly shortly after Jamaica’s qualification for the 1998 Finals. Both games were played at the Queen’s Park Oval. .
In the preliminary phase of the World Cup qualifiers, T&T has to get past the winner of the first round tie between Bermuda and Cayman Islands which will be played on February 6 and March 26.
Those winners will clash with T&T in a second round home and away tie on June 14/15 and June 21/22. Once through to the semi-final stage, T&T’s campaign will then continue on August 20 where its possible opponents could be the United States, Cuba and Guatemala. Jamaica meantime, await the winners of the Bahamas/British Virgin Islands before facing a potential semi-final group with Canada, Honduras and Mexico. (Shaun Fuentes, Dec 16, 2007.Photo flashback from past T&T vs Jamaica friendly)
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