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THE Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) laments the decision of the Ministry of Health to not allow the TTFA to host this country’s opening Qatar 2022 World Cup Qualifier versus Guyana in Trinidad, in a hot-bubble environment, on March 25. The TTFA has therefore decided to stage the match at the Pan American Stadium, San Cristobal, Dominican Republic.
A TTFA media release said, "The TTFA will provide further information over the coming days in relation to arrangements for the men’s senior team leading up to this important opening qualifying match."
Before the TTFA release, Minister of Sport and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe said various options were being considered.
According to Cudjoe, the three options were: to bring the players in time to quarantine to play; set the match for a later date to allow the players the time to properly quarantine or to play the game on a neutral ground in the Caribbean or within the Americas that both teams could agree on.
The TTFA media release added, "Over the last few months, we have been in discussions with the Ministry of Health, Sports Company of TT and other relevant Government agencies. Based on these discussions, numerous proposals and scenarios were put forward to host the match in Trinidad, but unfortunately none were ultimately successful, which would satisfy our FIFA mandates for international competitions."
The quarantine measure does not allow the match to be played in TT. "The Ministry of Health’s protocol and guidelines mandate 14 days quarantine for anyone entering the country. This condition is not feasible given the FIFA international match window and the Ministry of Health has declined the TTFA’s request of an exemption to facilitate a hot-bubble which would allow members of both teams, including staff, to arrive within a suitable time period conducive to international football. We have worked tirelessly with FIFA, Concacaf and the Government of TT to find solutions but regrettably, a compromise could not be found."
The qualifier was originally scheduled to play at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, conditions the TT players would have been familiar with. "The TTFA is incredibly disappointed and shares the public’s frustration at not being able to play our designated home match on local soil. However, we do understand the responsibilities of the Ministry of Health and appreciate the efforts that they are making to preserve the safety of the citizens of our country."
"The TTFA is committed to giving the men’s senior national team the best preparation possible during these challenging times. We have been working and continue to work on solutions to provide head coach Terry Fenwick the opportunity to engage in international friendly matches and training camps ahead of the qualifiers. With the confirmation that the venue has been set for San Cristobal, we anticipate that further plans will be rolled out over the coming days." Dominica and St Vincent and the Grenadines are two friendlies TT are targetting before the qualifier.
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