Trinidad and Tobago put old wine into new skins in Nassau on Saturday, but the brand new BOL kit designs failed to mask the deep problems in local football.
Instead, TT football sank to a new low after an abysmal performance in a 0-0 draw against 201st-ranked Bahamas.
The shocking result ended the country’s 2022 FIFA World Cup campaign before it had really begun.
Assistant TT coach Kelvin Jack buried his head in his hands at the final whistle, perhaps replicating what Soca Warriors fans had been doing throughout the 90 minutes of frustration by coach Terry Fenwick's team.
Bahamas certainly gave their all, showing pride and grit after conceding 15 goals unanswered in their previous three games.
In contrast, the Soca Warriors looked uninspired, discombobulated and without purpose, as Bahamas refused to roll over.
BOL, a Miami-based sports apparel company, is charging US$90 each for the new designs.
Coach Fenwick, after the game, blamed TT's profligacy in front of the goal for the draw.
"We created about six, seven or eight chances and didn’t convert – and if you don’t score at this level, teams can come back and bite you, and I thought that’s what they did.”
TT's shooting was certainly poor, but Fenwick hardly told the full story of a must-win encounter.
Errant passes from both sides were prevalent throughout the game and gave Bahamas belief, as the match grew on, that the Soca Warriors were perhaps at their level.
TT players looked unsure about where they should be on the field or where their teammates were. The intent to score was there, but the approach to the end product was lacking.
National captain Khaleem Hyland's late arrival to the camp from Saudi Arabia, 24 hours before the game, meant he could only join in the second half – and his absence on the field showed.
But even so, TT still should have had enough talent to take care of business against a very weak Bahamas team. Footage after the game showed the Bahamians, bottom of Group F, celebrating their point – their first in World Cup qualifying in over a decade.
Fenwick certainly has to take the majority of the blame for the campaign's abrupt end – although there was no mention of that in his post-match interview in the Bahamas. The Englishman, after over a year in charge, has yet to leave an imprint on the squad.
Off the field, meanwhile, there have been unnecessary distractions, including a confrontation with team media officer Shaun Fuentes over media personnel being invited to media conferences.
Against Bahamas, Fenwick was unable to effectively utilise AEK Athens' Levi Garcia down the right flank. On the left side, multiple MLS champion Joevin Jones struggled to make an impact and was forced backwards regularly.
A swap of flanks might have given Bahamas something different to think about. It never happened.
Instead, the minutes ticked away with TT no closer to breaking the deadlock.
As TT struggled to string together passes, it took them almost the duration of the game to try a more direct approach. Unsurprisingly
