Barbados-145th (21st North America)
Bermuda-185th (31st North America)
Guyana-114th (13th North America)
Trinidad and Tobago-88th (8th North America)
Schedule
September 2, 2011
- Bermuda at Trinidad and Tobago
- Barbados at Guyana
- Trinidad and Tobago at Barbados
- Bermuda at Guyana
- Trinidad and Tobago at Bermuda
- Guyana at Barbados
- Barbados at Trinidad and Tobago
- Guyana at Bermuda
- Trinidad and Tobago at Guyana
- Barbados at Bermuda
- Guyana at Trinidad and Tobago
- Bermuda at Barbados
Past International Records
Barbados
- 2011 to date: 0-2-2
- 2010 WC Qualifying/Finals: 1-2-1
- vs. Group opponents: 10-18-11
- 2011 to date: 0-0-0
- 2010 WC Qualifying/Finals: 2-1-1
- vs. Group opponents: 6-7-4
- 2011 to date: 2-0-1
- 2010 WC Qualifying/Finals: 0-2-0
- vs. Group opponents: 4-16-8
- 2011 to date: 1-0-0
- 2010 WC Qualifying/Finals: 5-8-5
- vs. Group opponents: 26-5-9
Barbados
All hope is not lost for Barbados in this group. They played a trio of games against groupmate Guyana in May of this year, picking up a draw and a pair of 1 goal losses. Not exactly going to intimidate their opponents in this group but it might give them a bit of confidence that they can compete with them. Barbados will be a thorn in the side of all of their opponents in this group. They don't hold any recent marquee wins but neither do they have any horrendous losses on their record since last qualifying campaign when they flamed out in a Round 2 pairing against the U.S. Without question they need to raise their game; almost every team does and Barbados is definitely a longshot in this group. But it isn't an impossibility for the Caribbean nation. Their first four games are against Guyana and Trinidad. They don't need to take every game but if Barbados can manage 1 victory against each team, they might be poised to have a shot at the group.
Bermuda
Good news for Bermuda. Top-seeded Trinidad & Tobago was the team they met up with in Round 2 in 2010 qualifying. They split the results and lost 3-2 on aggregate. Bad news for Bermuda. They haven't played since August 2008 and that win was their last in an international game. I'm having a hard time reconciling Bermuda's 2010 qualifying results with present form. By all accounts, a Round 1 win and a near Round 2 upset of an eventual CONCACAF finalist is a great result for Bermuda. But then they just stopped playing and their ranking has plummeted (because they haven't played). Conventional wisdom says they're at the bottom of the pile in Group 2, but then again the last results I have to go off of suggest otherwise. This will subsequently be one of the teams I'm watching very closely in the first couple games, more out of curiosity then anything. If they can pull an early upset, then this group is truly wide open. If not then might I suggest to Bermuda to play a few more games. Because they definitely had some momentum last campaign.
Guyana
Along with Suriname, the other South American nation that is a member of CONCACAF. Barring any major surprises, Guyana should be the primary threat facing Trinidad and Tobago at the top of the group. They've met twice in the past year, drawing in a friendly in Guyana and losing 2-1 to Trinidad in Trinidad at the 2010 Caribbean Championship. They'll some time to sit and ponder their rematches though, as they won't occur until November. It's imperative for Guyana to go in to those games with 3 or 4 wins. They can't afford to be dropping games against a pair of pesky teams in Barbados and Bermuda. Sights will be on Trinidad throughout the group but any slipup before that will be devastating.
Trinidad and Tobago
The top seed in the group, they post a formidable record against their group opponents, with 26 wins and just 5 losses in 40 games. Trinidad haven't been at their best since 2010 qualifying ended. They picked up 3 losses in their next 4 losses and haven't come close to their qualfiying form since 2009. A 3-0 win against India recently in a tune-up shows that they're still a dangerous team in the Caribbean. One advantage afforded to Trinidad is their new head coaching hire Otto Pfister. Pfister led a surprising Togo team at the 2006 World Cup Finals and then led Cameroon to a final in the 2008 African Cup of Nations. He's known for having an oft-tumultuous relationship with his players but there is no denying is pedigree coaching on the international stage. Trinidad also benefits from having a number of players playing abroad in major professional leagues, most notably: Kenwyne Jones, first-choice striker for Stoke City in the English Premier League.
September Games:
Game 1
Bermuda at Trinidad and Tobago
September 2, 2011
Time: 7:00 pm EDT
Location: Hasely Crawford Stadium, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
Game 2
Barbados at Guyana
September 2, 2011
Time: 7:30 pm EDT
Location: Providence Stadium, Georgetown, Guyana
Game 3
Trinidad and Tobago at Barbados
September 6, 2011
Time: 4:00 pm EDT
Location: Barbados National Stadium, Bridgetown, Barbados
Game 4
Guyana at Bermuda
September 6, 2011
Time: TBA
Location: Bermuda National Stadium, Hamilton, Bermuda
My gut tells me Guyana and Trinidad pick up a pair of victories this go-around but for some reason I'm really not confident in either one right now. There are any number of permutations as to how this group will look September 7th which is exciting as an observer, this early in qualifying. Biggest upset potential: Barbados at home against Trinidad.
Post-September Standing Predictions:
.....???
Trinidad and Tobago-6 pts
Guyana-4 pts
Barbados-1 pts
Bermuda-0 pts
No comments:
Post a Comment