Trinidad and Tobago national football team

Trinidad and Tobago
Nickname(s) The Soca Warriors
Association Trinidad and Tobago Football Association
Confederation CONCACAF
(North America)
Sub-confederation CFU (Caribbean)
Head coach Dennis Lawrence
Captain Curtis Gonzales
Most caps Angus Eve (117)
Top scorer Stern John (70)
Home stadium Hasely Crawford Stadium
FIFA code TRI
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 90 Increase 1 (20 September 2018)
Highest 25 (June 2001)
Lowest 106 (October 2010)
Elo ranking
Current 101 Steady 2 (20 August 2018)
Highest 36 (1937)
Lowest 116 (September 1987)
First international
 British Guiana 1–4 Trinidad and Tobago 
(British Guiana; 21 July 1905)[1]
Biggest win
 Trinidad and Tobago 11–0 Aruba 
(Arima, Trinidad and Tobago; 23 April 1989)
Biggest defeat
 Mexico 7–0 Trinidad and Tobago 
(Mexico City, Mexico; 8 October 2000)
World Cup
Appearances 1 (first in 2006)
Best result Group stage, 2006
CONCACAF Championship
& Gold Cup
Appearances 15 (first in 1967)
Best result Runners-up, 1973

The Trinidad and Tobago national football team, nicknamed the Soca Warriors, represents the twin-island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago in international football. It is controlled by the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association and competes in both CONCACAF (the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) and the Caribbean Football Union, its sub-continental confederation. The team is ranked 83rd in the world according to the FIFA Rankings, and 91st in the World Football Elo Ratings. They reached the first round of the 2006 World Cup and held the record of being the smallest nation (both in size and population) to ever qualify for a World Cup, until the 2018 World Cup, when Iceland broke the (population) record.

The national team competes in the World Cup and the Gold Cup, in addition to the Caribbean Cup and other competitions by invitation. The Soca Warriors lone appearance at the World Cup came in 2006 after the team defeated Bahrain 2–1 on aggregate in the CONCACAF–AFC intercontinental play-off. The team has qualified for the CONCACAF Gold Cup on eight occasions with their best performance in 2000 after reaching the semi-finals, finishing 3rd. However, the national team has experienced great success in the Caribbean Cup having won the sub-continental competition eight times and runners-up on five occasions.

The separate Trinidad and Tobago national football teams are not related to the national team and are not directly affiliated with the game's governing bodies of FIFA or CONCACAF, but are affiliated with the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation.

History

1970s

At the 1973 CONCACAF Championship, Trinidad and Tobago fell two points short of qualifying for the 1974 World Cup Finals in controversial fashion. Trinidad and Tobago lost a crucial game on 4 December 1973 against hosts Haiti 2–1 after being denied five goals. The referee, José Roberto Henríquez of El Salvador, and Canadian linesman James Higuet were subsequently banned for life by FIFA for the dubious events of the match.[2][3][4]

1980s to 1990s: The Strike Squad

Trinidad and Tobago came within one game of qualifying for the 1990 World Cup in Italy. Nicknamed the Strike Squad during the qualifying campaign, Trinidad and Tobago needed only a draw to qualify in their final game played at home against the United States on 19 November 1989. In front of an over-capacity crowd of more than 30,000 at the National Stadium on Red Day,[5] Paul Caligiuri of the United States scored the only goal of the game in the 38th minute dashing Trinidad and Tobago's qualification hopes.[6] For the good behaviour of the crowd at the stadium, despite the devastating loss and overcrowded stands, the spectators of Trinidad and Tobago were awarded the FIFA Fair Play Award in 1989.[7]

2000s

2006 FIFA World Cup

Trinidad and Tobago qualified for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, its first-ever qualification for the tournament. During their qualifying campaign, they sat at the bottom of the table in the final round of qualifying with one point from three. However, after the arrival of Leo Beenhakker as team coach and the recalling of veteran players Dwight Yorke and Russell Latapy, Trinidad and Tobago reversed its fortunes and placed fourth in the group. They qualified via a play-off against Bahrain, recovering from a 1–1 draw at home to win 1–0 in Manama, Bahrain to book a place in the finals. As a result, Trinidad and Tobago became the smallest country to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, a record they held until Iceland reached their first World Cup in 2018.

In Germany, Trinidad and Tobago were grouped with England, Sweden and Paraguay in Group B. They drew their first game 0–0 against Sweden despite going down to ten men early in the second half. They lost both their remaining matches against England and Paraguay by a 2–0 margin.

Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 England 321052+37
 Sweden 312032+15
 Paraguay 31022203
 Trinidad and Tobago 301204−41
Team   Score   Team
Trinidad and Tobago  0–0  Sweden
England  2–0  Trinidad and Tobago
Paraguay  2–0  Trinidad and Tobago

2010s

2010 World Cup Cycle

Trinidad and Tobago began their campaign in the Second Round with a home and away series against Bermuda. Trinidad and Tobago lost the first match at home 1–2, but bounced back to win the away leg in Bermuda 2–0 to progress to the third round 3–2 on aggregate. The Soca Warriors advanced to Group 1 of the Third Round alongside the United States, Guatemala, and Cuba. Trinidad and Tobago progressed to the Fourth Round by placing second in the group with eleven points from six games. This qualified Trinidad and Tobago for the Fourth Round, or Hexagonal, against Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, and the United States. The Fourth Round was also played in a home and away format among the six teams involved. Qualification quickly turned disastrous for Trinidad and Tobago as they tied 2–2 with El Salvador after leading 2–0. They would then tie 1–1 with Honduras following a late-strike. However, three consecutive losses to the United States, Costa Rica, and Mexico found the Soca Warriors bottom of the Hexagonal with two points from their first five matches. In their sixth match, they recorded their first win of the round by defeating El Salvador 1–0. However, the victory was short lived as they suffered losses to Honduras and the United States the following month; ending their hopes to qualify for the World Cup.

2014 World Cup Cycle

Trinidad and Tobago entered qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in the Second Round of CONCACAF as a seeded team with Guyana, Bermuda, and Barbados the other teams drawn in Group B. The Soca Warriors defeated Bermuda (1–0) and Bardados (2–0) in their first two matches to earn a full six points. However, on 7 October 2011, Trinidad and Tobago lost away to Bermuda in Devonshire Parish 2–1 to hurt its chances of advancing to the Third Round of qualification.[8] The team quickly rebounded four days later by defeating Barbados 4–0 in Hasely Crawford Stadium with a hat-trick from Lester Peltier.[9] Entering the final two matches in the Second Round, Trinidad and Tobago found itself in second place behind Guyana by one point. As only the group winner would advance to the Third Round of qualification, the Soca Warriors needed to take four points in the next two matches both facing Guyana to advance. Trinidad and Tobago first traveled to Providence, Guyana to face the Golden Jaguars on 11 November 2011. With an early goal from Ricky Shakes and another from Leon Cort in the 81st minute, Trinidad and Tobago found itself behind 2–0 and facing elimination. Kenwyne Jones managed to pull the team within a goal in the 93rd minute, but it was too late as the match would end 2–1 in favor of Guyana.[10] With the loss, Trinidad and Tobago were officially eliminated from qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. On 12 January 2012, Otto Pfister was sacked following a disappointing campaign which saw the country's earliest exit from World Cup qualification since 1994.[11]

2018 World Cup Cycle

Trinidad and Tobago entered qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in the Fourth Round and was drawn into Group C with Guatemala, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the United States. The team would finish second in Group C with a total of 11 points to qualify for the Hexagonal. However, they would finish in sixth place in the final round with only 6 points, even though they eliminated the United States from World Cup contention with a 2–1 victory in the final match.

Team image

Home stadium

Hasely Crawford Stadium became the home of the national team in 1980

For the first eighty years of their existence, Trinidad and Tobago played their home matches all around the country with Queen's Park Oval, generally thought of as the most picturesque and largest of the old cricket grounds in the West Indies, as the most often used venue.[12] The cricket ground served as the country's largest stadium until the new National Stadium was built in Mucurapo, Port of Spain, to host the nation's athletics competitions and international football matches.

The stadium later was renovated and renamed after Hasely Crawford, the first person from Trinidad and Tobago to win an Olympic gold medal, prior to Trinidad and Tobago hosting the 2001 FIFA U-17 World Championship. The stadium currently has a seating capacity of 23,000 and is owned by the Trinidad and Tobago government and managed through the Ministry of Sport via its special purpose state agency called SporTT.[13]

In recent years, the TTFA have hosted matches at the smaller 10,000 seat Ato Boldon Stadium in Couva, citing a problem with the lighting system at Hasely Crawford Stadium, lower expenses for matches at Ato Boldon, and fans being seated closer to the pitch.[14] Trinidad and Tobago hosted two games during "The Hex" in late 2017. They lost to Honduras 1-2 on September 1st, 2017. On October 10th, 2017, Trinidad and Tobago defeated the United States 2-1, causing the United States to fail to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1986. Ato Boldon Stadium has since hosted friendlies against Grenada, Guyana, and Panama.

Supporters

Soca Warriors' supporters before the team's opening 2006 FIFA World Cup match against Sweden

The major supporters' group for the national team is the Soca Warriors Supporters Club or the Warrior Nation. The group is a non-profit organisation that is independent of the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association. Formed shortly after Trinidad and Tobago secured qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the supporters' club was organised by Soca Warriors Online founder Inshan Mohammed and Nigel Myers.

The group's activities include promoting teams locally and globally, lobbying the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association as representatives of football fans, advocating fair pricing and allocation of event tickets, organising travel for fans to home and away matches, providing a family-oriented fans' organisation, and promoting football among the young people of Trinidad and Tobago.

Players

For all past and present players who have appeared for the national team, see Trinidad and Tobago national team players.

Current squad

The following players were called up for the friendly match against the Thailand on 14 October 2018.
Goals and caps are updated as of 14 October 2018, after the match against the Thailand.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Marvin Phillip (1984-08-01) 1 August 1984 67 0 Trinidad and Tobago Central
1GK Adrian Foncette (1988-10-10) 10 October 1988 11 0 Trinidad and Tobago Police
2DF Daneil Cyrus (1990-12-15) 15 December 1990 74 0 Saudi Arabia Al-Orobah
2DF Aubrey David (1990-10-11) 11 October 1990 43 1 Finland VPS
2DF Sheldon Bateau (1991-01-29) 29 January 1991 34 3 Kazakhstan Kairat
2DF Curtis Gonzales (1989-01-26) 26 January 1989 30 0 Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force
2DF Alvin Jones (1994-07-09) 9 July 1994 14 1 Trinidad and Tobago W Connection
2DF Tristan Hodge (1993-10-09) 9 October 1993 12 0 Trinidad and Tobago W Connection
2DF Keston Julien (1998-10-26) 26 October 1998 2 0 Slovakia AS Trenčín
3MF Khaleem Hyland (1989-06-05) 5 June 1989 78 4 Saudi Arabia Al-Faisaly
3MF Kevan George (1990-01-30) 30 January 1990 40 0 United States Charlotte Independence
3MF Nathan Lewis (1990-07-20) 20 July 1990 18 2 United States Indy Eleven
3MF Leston Paul (1990-03-11) 11 March 1990 17 0 El Salvador Pasaquina
3MF Jomal Williams (1994-04-28) 28 April 1994 13 2 Trinidad and Tobago W Connection
3MF Akeem Humphrey (1995-11-25) 25 November 1995 1 0 Trinidad and Tobago Club Sando
3MF Duane Muckette (1995-07-01) 1 July 1995 0 0 Trinidad and Tobago Central
4FW Shahdon Winchester (1992-01-08) 8 January 1992 25 6 Finland SJK Seinäjoki
4FW Ricardo John (1995-04-10) 10 April 1995 2 0 El Salvador Luis Ángel Firpo

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called to the squad in the last twelve months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Andre Marchan (1990-08-11) 11 August 1990 0 0 Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
GK Glenroy Samuel (1990-04-05) 5 April 1990 1 0 Trinidad and Tobago Morvant Caledonia United v.  Guyana, 14 November 2017
GK Greg Ranjitsingh (1993-07-18) 18 July 1993 0 0 United States Louisville City v.  Guyana, 14 November 2017
DF Joevin Jones (1991-08-03) 3 August 1991 67 7 Germany Darmstadt 98 v.  Thailand, 14 October 2018 PRE
DF Maurice Ford (1996-09-06) 6 September 1996 3 0 Trinidad and Tobago W Connection v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
DF Jameel Neptune (1993-07-19) 19 July 1993 1 0 Trinidad and Tobago Central v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
DF Taryk Sampson (1997-03-05) 5 March 1997 0 0 Trinidad and Tobago Central v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
DF Mekeil Williams (1990-07-24) 24 July 1990 21 1 United States Richmond Kickers v.  Guadeloupe, 23 March 2018
DF Kevon Villaroel (1987-12-17) 17 December 1987 5 0 Trinidad and Tobago North East Stars v.  Guyana, 14 November 2017
MF Ataullah Guerra (1987-11-14) 14 November 1987 41 6 United States Charleston Battery v.  Thailand, 14 October 2018 PRE
MF Neveal Hackshaw (1995-09-21) 21 September 1995 8 0 United States Charleston Battery v.  United Arab Emirates, 6 September 2018
MF Kathon St. Hillaire (1997-11-05) 5 November 1997 3 0 Czech Republic 1. SC Znojmo v.  United Arab Emirates, 6 September 2018
MF Levi Garcia (1997-11-20) 20 November 1997 15 2 Israel Ironi Kiryat Shmona v.  United Arab Emirates, 6 September 2018 INJ
MF Cordell Cato (1992-07-15) 15 July 1992 25 2 United States Charlotte Independence v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Hashim Arcia (1988-10-08) 8 October 1988 12 1 Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Jared London (1995-02-06) 6 February 1995 5 0 Trinidad and Tobago Club Sando v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Nathaniel Garcia (1993-04-24) 24 April 1993 4 0 Trinidad and Tobago Point Fortin Civic v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Judah Garcia (1999-10-24) 24 October 1999 1 0 Trinidad and Tobago Shiva Boys Hindu College v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Kevon Goddard (1996-01-20) 20 January 1996 1 0 Trinidad and Tobago W Connection v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Reon Moore 1 0 Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Rhondel Gibson (1997-04-23) 23 April 1997 0 0 Trinidad and Tobago Central v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Isaiah Hudson (2000-07-27) 27 July 2000 0 0 Trinidad and Tobago W Connection v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Justin Sadoo (1997-09-11) 11 September 1997 0 0 Trinidad and Tobago Point Fortin Civic v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
MF Kevin Molino (1990-06-17) 17 June 1990 43 19 United States Minnesota United v.  Guyana, 14 November 2017
MF Neil Benjamin (1994-08-20) 20 August 1994 1 0 Vietnam Nam Định v.  Guyana, 14 November 2017
MF Josiah Trimmingham (1996-12-14) 14 December 1996 1 0 Trinidad and Tobago Club Sando v.  Guyana, 14 November 2017
FW Marcus Joseph (1991-04-29) 29 April 1991 13 1 Trinidad and Tobago W Connection v.  United Arab Emirates, 6 September 2018
FW Akeem Roach (1995-12-09) 9 December 1995 6 1 Unattached v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
FW Nicholas Dillon (1997-03-25) 25 March 1997 1 0 Belgium Patro Eisden v.  Panama, 18 April 2018
FW Jamille Boatswain (1993-09-30) 30 September 1993 9 2 Honduras Honduras Progreso v.  Guyana, 14 November 2017

Previous squads

Results and schedule

2017

2018

2019

Records

As of 29 April 2017
Players in bold are still active, at least at club level.[15]

Players with an equal number of caps are ranked in chronological order of reaching the milestone.

Most capped players

Rank Player Position Caps Goals Career[16]
1 Angus Eve
MF
 117 34 1994–2005
2 Stern John
FW
 115 70 1995–2011
3 Marvin Andrews
DF
 103 10 1996–2009
4 Densill Theobald
MF
 99 2 2002–2013
5 Carlos Edwards
MF
 96 4 1999–
6 Kenwyne Jones
FW
 91 23 2003–
7 Dennis Lawrence
DF
 89 5 2000–2010
8 Jan-Michael Williams
GK
 81 0 2003–
9 Clayton Ince
GK
 79 0 1997–2009
10 Russell Latapy
MF
 78 29 1988–2009

Top goalscorers

Rank Player Position Goals Caps Rate Career[16]
1 Stern John
FW
 70 115 0.61 1995–2011
2 Angus Eve
MF
 34 117 0.29 1994–2005
3 Russell Latapy
MF
 29 81 0.36 1988–2009
4 Arnold Dwarika
MF
 28 73 0.38 1993–2008
5 Cornell Glen
FW
 24 71 0.34 2002–2013
6 Kenwyne Jones
FW
 23 91 0.25 2003–2017
7 Nigel Pierre
FW
 22 57 0.39 1999–2005
8 Leonson Lewis
FW
 21 31 0.68 1988–1996
9 Dwight Yorke
FW
 19 72 0.26 1989–2009
10 Devorn Jorsling
FW
 18 41 0.44 2007–2015
10 Kevin Molino
FW
 18 39 0.46 2010–

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

Trinidad and Tobago first appeared at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The Soca Warriors finished bottom of the group with one point from the team's three matches. Even though the team did not advance in the competition, Trinidad and Tobago recorded its first point from the FIFA World Cup after a 0–0 draw to Sweden in its first match.

Trinidad and Tobago failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup between 1966 and 2002, then again in 2010 to 2018.

* Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks. Darker color indicates win, normal color indicates lost.
** Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.
*** Red border colour indicates tournament was held on home soil.

Managers

former national team manager Stephen Hart

Honours

Continental competitions

Regional competitions

Friendly competitions

See also

References

General
Specific
  1. ↑ Trinidad and Tobago – List of International Matches
  2. ↑ Trinidad and Tobago's Soca Warriors set to give them all in Germany, Guardian UK. Accessed June 23, 2008.
  3. ↑ Football: Carnival time and the Trinis are up for the party, The Independent. Accessed June 23, 2008.
  4. ↑ Trinidad Express – Haitian robbery: Trinidad and Tobago cheated W/Cup spot, Socawarriors.net. Accessed June 23, 2008.
  5. ↑ Red-Day, Nov, 19, 1989, YouTube.com. Accessed: June 23, 2008.
  6. ↑ Pulse: Thank You Trinidad and Tobago Warriors Archived 17 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine., Trinidad Guardian. Accessed June 23, 2008.
  7. ↑ FIFA Fair Play Awards Archived 1 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine., FIFA.com. Accessed June 23, 2008.
  8. ↑ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ – Matches – Bermuda-Trinidad and Tobago – FIFA.com". FIFA.com.
  9. ↑ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™". FIFA.com.
  10. ↑ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™". FIFA.com.
  11. ↑ Inshan Mohammed. "Corneal appointed TTFF Technical Director, Otto Pfister axed". socawarriors.net.
  12. ↑ "Queen's Park Oval". Cricinfo Staff. 2007-03-13. Retrieved 2009-08-03.
  13. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 23 March 2016. Retrieved 2016-03-31.
  14. ↑ {{cite news |title= U.S.'s World Cup qualifier in Trinidad set for 10,000-seat stadium| url= http://www.espn.com/soccer/united-states/story/3205014/uss-world-cup-qualifier-in-trinidad-set-for-10,000-seat-stadium |publisher = ESPN |date = 2017-09-15 |accessdate = 2018-10-03
  15. ↑ Mamrud, Roberto. "Trinidad and Tobago  – Record International Players". RSSSF. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
  16. 1 2 Inshan Mohammed (13 October 2012). "Goalscorers". Soca Warriors Online. Retrieved 13 October 2012.
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