DAVID SCARLETT
In the aftermath of TT’s crash-and-burn performance against Nicaragua in the Concacaf Nations League on Monday, budding TT national Kaille Auvray believes that the Soca Warriors can still claim their place in this year’s Concacaf Gold Cup.
The TT senior men’s team shared the spoils with their Central AmericaKaille Auvray n opponents following a 1-1 draw at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet. Having trailed midway through the first half, Joevin Jones’ 42nd-minute penalty brought the Warriors level. However, they lacked the physical muscle and technical guile to defeat Nicaragua in front of a hopeful home crowd.
Marcus Joseph’s disallowed goal (for handball) in second-half stoppage time made the evening even more frustrating than it was as, ultimately, the draw meant that the Warriors remained second in the group – destroying their hopes of advancing to be among the “big boys” in the region.
Having been relegated from League A in the last Nations League campaign, winning the group would have seen the Warriors promoted from League B and back with the elite. TT’s failure to claim the top spot also meant that they would not earn automatic qualification for the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup. Repeating the process from two years ago, they will now have to qualify through the preliminary stages. Additionally, the Warriors will also miss out on a chance to qualify for the 2024 Conmebol Copa America.
However, Auvray is adamant that he and his teammates can recover and successfully qualify for the Gold Cup through the preliminaries. Although he is only 18 years old, the silky winger is loaded with experience. He is currently the player with the most nationalities represented having played for Guadeloupe’s Under-15 team, the United States Under-17 team, France’s Under-17 team, St Martin’s senior team and now the TT senior team. Born in France, Auvray is eligible to represent the Soca Warriors through his Trinidadian mother. His father, Stephane Auvray, is a former footballer and now the head coach of St Martin – who coached against TT boss Angus Eve in an international friendly two months ago. Auvray also has club experience with Lille (France) before moving to the United States to play for Minnesota United II and now Sporting Kansas City II.
TT’s new acquisition was a part of Eve’s training camp last December before “auditioning” against the Warriors in the aforementioned friendly at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Port-of-Spain. Inspired by world superstars like Eden Hazard and Neymar, he proved his value to the TT national team by being one of the team’s top performers in the two Nations League matches against the Bahamas and Nicaragua, as well as in the two friendly matches versus Jamaica prior to the competitive fixtures. Unfortunately, his minutes on the pitch were stifled by Eve’s tactical substitutions, but the mercurial starlet has now shown the nation what he’s capable of.
In an interview with the TT Football Association (TTFA) Media, Auvray expressed, “(The past few days with the national team)
