RED FEVER. It was a draw, but it felt like a win.
To all Trinidad and Tobago football fans it felt like Soca Warriors
had won the World Cup. , in Dortmund, Germany, in front of more
than 60 000 fans and more than a billion television viewers, they
battled hard for a 0-0 draw against fancied Sweden, with just ten
men playing the entire second half. It was a result that shocked
the footballing world and gave the Soca Warriors their first points
in the prestigious company of football's greatest.
The amazing result put the 47th ranked
Trinidad and Tobago literally at the ;centre of the universe'. It's
the smallest country ever to play in the World Cup and yesterday's
heroics set up a huge mouth-watering battle when they face England
on Thursday. Here, patrons waving the Trinidad flag while cheering
on the Soca Warriors at Lucky Horseshoe in Worthing, Christ Church.
(PS) (Picture by Charles Grant.)
Trinidad and Tobago's captain Dwight Yorke celebrating
at the end of the Sweden v Trinidad and Tobago, Group B, World Cup
2006 soccer match. The match ended in a scoreless draw.
Trinidad and Tobago's keeper Shaka Hislop
and teammate Dennis Lawrence celebrating at the end of the draw against
Sweden. (AP Picture)
It was mas and celebration on June 24, 2006 in
Trinidad when hundreds went to Piarco International Airport to welcome
heroes Soca Warriors home after competing in the FIFA World Cup.
Among those at the airport was Prime Minister Patrick Manning who
gave captain Dwight Yorke (inset right) and his team a hero's welcome.
In a region where cricket has traditionally
had a stronghold, Football has gradually been making incursions into
the consciousness of sports fans. Trinidad
& Tobago' s national team has been prominent for a while, taking
part in regional competition as well as world cup qualifying matches
and the
Reggae Boyz from Jamaica were great favourites when they competed
in the 1998 world cup. Barbados
is also taking football seriously with an enthusiastic youth
team that is doing well in international fixtures
The Barbados Football association was
founded in 1910 and cele- brated its 90th anniversary in 2000. The
BFA was orginally named the Barbados Amateur Football Association.
The name was changed in 1925. The Barbados Football Association became
affiliated to FIFA in 1968. It is also an affiliate of the Caribbean
Football Union and CONCACAF.
Masters Football in Barbados is in a healthy state with over fifteen
teams competing in the local championships. Some known to you are
the Cockspurs Wanderers and the Texaco Black Rock team all playing
at top level.
May-2004 by Philip Spooner
in Grenada
The Barbados Football Association (BFA) has been given the green
light to proceed with its controversial stadium project at Wildey,
St Michael.
This is according to BFA president Ronald Jones, who yesterday
told the DAILY NATION that the Town and Country Planning Department
had given them the go-ahead, but the project had to be scaled down.
In the World Cup of 1998 the Reggae
Boyz reigned supreme and for a while football was on every Jamaican's
mind.
In France, people attending the world cup matches were asked who they
would pick after their own home team to win and an overwhelming majority
picked Jamaica! Testament to the effort and character displayed by the
team and a matter of great pride for the country.
Sporting Masters
Caribzones is proud to be associated with Sporting
Masters offering exclusive, limited edition signed posters of the
1966 World Cup winning England team.
