SOCA Warriors head coach Angus Eve has called on his younger players to step up to the plate following Trinidad and Tobago's 2-1 friendly win over Guyana at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo on May 13.
In the first of two friendly matches between the two teams in the build-up to Fifa 2026 World Cup qualifying next month, the hosts stormed out to a 2-0 lead at the halfway mark after a pair of well-taken goals by debutants Ezekiel Kesar and Kevon "Showtime" Woodley, the 2023/24 TT Premier Football League's (TTPFL) leading goal scorer.
The home team's intensity and control diminished in the second half, though, and the Guyanese came on strong in the second period after grabbing a 47th-minute goal from their tricky winger Kelsey Benjamin. The 25-year-old Benjamin was highlighted as one of the standout players by coach Jamaal Shabazz, who felt the visitors gave a good account of themselves in the "useful exercise."
Eve was pleased with his team's execution of their game plan in the first half, and he said TT should have capitalised on their positive spells to put the game beyond the "Golden Jaguars" in the first 45. In the second half, though, with the Soca Warriors coach making a handful of substitutions and granting debuts to the midfield quartet of Simeon Bailey, Adriel George, Josiah Wilson and San Juan North Secondary star Lindell Sween, Eve noted a drop in his team's standard.
"I was disappointed. To be fair, I thought it was a game of two halves," Eve told the media after the match. "I thought in the first half we really did what we wanted to do and what we practised. Basically, the ball (retention) was really good in the first half. We moved the ball around and we changed sides. We penetrated and we created opportunities.
"In the second half, that just went to pieces. I know we made some changes and we did play some younger kids but I was disappointed with their quality on the ball."
Kesar and the Caledonia forward Woodley, who has netted 16 goals in the TTPFL this season, were both taken off in the 67th minute as Wilson and the 17-year-old Sween entered the fray. Meanwhile, the central midfield pair of Bailey and George came on in the 76th minute as Matthew Woo-Ling and Daniel David, another debutant, made way.
Operating on the left and right wings respectively, Wilson and Sween looked anxious and hurried in possession, while the latter spurned TT's best second-half chance after being played through on goal in stoppage time. Known for his sturdy midfield play and tough tackling, the lanky Bailey also wasted a presentable chance when he shot wildly over bar in the 82nd minute after the opposition failed to deal with a Wilson corner.
"I know it's a lot of young kids that we put on, but I expect bigger things from them. Josiah Wilson and young (Lindell) Sween have been playing at national level for a while and they have been playing at senior (club) level for a while, so I expected a little bit more from them today."
Eve said he was initially surprised by Guyana's 5-3-2 shape, which saw the
