Speid expects tough Caribbean Cup outing against T&T outfit
Published:Thursday | August 31, 2023 | 12:11 AMLivingston Scott/Gleaner Writer
CAVALIER COACH Rudolph Speid goes into today’s Group A Concacaf Caribbean Cup game against AC Port-of-Spain at Sabina Park at 5 p.m., knowing that a win would put them in pole position.
However, the astute coach anticipates a difficult evening, particularly with a team short on preparation and missing key players.
Still, Speid is optimistic that his team can find a way.
“Our expectation is not too great. I would like to come out with a win, and clearly, a win is the best thing for us at this particular time.
“After playing the first match, we should be better. We play AC Port-of-Spain. They were the runners-up in the Trinidad League last year.
“The first game (against Defence Force of Trinidad) was difficult because we had not been in competition, and it was difficult to get practice games because no team was really training, except for the other teams in the competition,” said Speid.
However, the main challenge is losing players like Ronaldo Webster to FK Bregalnica Stip of Macedonia; Dwayne Anderson to IBV in Iceland; and Kenroy Campbell, who moved to FK Rigas Futbola Skola (RFS) in Latvia.
“There are about six players that we used to bank on that we do not have. It is something we have accepted and are trying to rebuild. So we have a lot of things riding against us, but we will do the best we can,” he said.
He said playing at home should give them a slight advantage and that the allure of moving on to the next stage is a big motivation for the entire squad. But he expects the Trinidadians to possess some quality and will fancy their chances of three points as well.
FAMILIAR TERRITORY
“Playing (first game) away would have been difficult. A lot of them were travelling for the first time. So playing at home should be better for us. We are in more familiar territory,” said Speid, referring to his team’s 1-1 draw away to Trinidad and Tobago’s Defence Force in their Caribbean Cup opener.
“We haven’t got many chances to look at them (opponent). I have seen one match with the Port-of-Spain team, but we really don’t know anything about them.
“They have few former national players, so they are really strong, and you know the rivalry between Trinidad and Jamaica is always big.
“But if we win this cup, we have a chance of playing one of the big teams in North America, and everybody is contemplating the thought that if we win this cup, we could be playing against the great one (Messi) at some time in the future,” he stated.
Moca of the Dominican Republic lead the group with three points. Cavalier and Defence Force have one point, and Golden Lion and Port-of-Spain are yet to get off the mark.