Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 17/Sep 10:37

Army confident ahead of clash with Caribbean Cup holders Cavalier

Defence Force interim coach Devorn Jorsling said he and his charges are confident of getting a positive result when they face reigning champs Cavalier FC in their group B Concacaf Caribbean Cup match at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica, on September 17. The match kicks off at 8 pm TT time and gives Defence Force the chance to go level on points with group leaders Cibao FC (six points). On matchday one on August 21, the Army/Coast Guard combination opened their campaign with a 1-0 win over Juventus des Cayes at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo. Meanwhile, Cavalier have had a stuttering start to their Caribbean Cup title defence as they lost 2-0 to Cibao on August 19, before drawing 1-1 with Juventus in Jamaica on August 28. Defence Force were on a bye for the second matchday and are hoping to keep their winning touch after their victory last month. With only the top two teams in each group advancing to the semifinals, the fourth-placed Cavalier will be desperate to improve their current position and leapfrog Jorsling's troops on the five-team table. "There are no easy games at this level. I think it's a big game for the club and for the country by extension because we know there has always been a rivalry between Jamaica and TT," Jorsling told Newsday. "It will be a very difficult game because they (Cavalier) are the defending champions for a reason and we know their backs are against the wall. If they don't win the game tomorrow, they would be out of the tournament." Defence Force, who sauntered to the 2024/25 TT Premier Football League (TTPFL) title on the back of an unbeaten season, have lofty Caribbean Cup dreams of their own and are eager to make amends for past tournaments. They were knocked out of the group phase of the 2023 tournament and were then eliminated at the round of 16 phase of the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Club Shield tourney the next year. The CFU Club Shield serves as the qualifying competition for the Caribbean Cup. "We have aspirations of coming out of this group and going on to win this tournament also. In order to achieve those things, you have to come to places like these and get a positive result," Jorsling said. "They will have the home support, the passion and the aggression. I think their experience will be a big threat and a big factor. They have played in the tournament consistently. Football is played on the day. And as I said before, we are quite confident we can get a positive result." Defence Force will be without defender Jelani Peters and the striking pair of Shackiel Henry and Elijah Seechan, both of whom were added for this tourney. Peters and Seechan have both been ruled out through injury, while Jorsling said the veteran Henry is unavailable because of personal reasons. With some smart hold up play, Henry set up captain Kevin Molino who scored the winner against Juventus. Jorsling bets on "Bongo" Though Jorsling will be without a couple of his new recruits, he welcomes back striker Isaiah "Bongo" Leacock to the squad after the latter missed the opening clash to personal reasons as well. The 25-year-old Leacock finished as Defence Force's joint top-scorer in the 2024/25 TTPFL campaign with 16 goals. With his guidance, Jorsling believes Leacock can be an asset on both the domestic and national levels. "I think when Isaiah Leacock's mind is in the right place and he's focused, he's still one of the best strikers in the country. For me as a coach, it's about keeping him focused and keeping him on the right path,"Jorsling said. "People in TT don't know that Isaiah only started playing organised football probably three or four years ago. To be honest, he has improved greatly and still has a lot to improve on. For me as his head coach and if I could say mentor, if I could get him in the right place mentally, he would be a force to be reckoned with in terms of getting back into the national pool and getting Defence Force to the championship." After their tussle with Cavalier, Defence Force will close off their group campaign with matches against Barbados' Weymouth Wales (September 25) and Dominican Republic's Cibao (October 1). Weymouth Wales finished second in this year's CFU Club Shield and Cibao were last year's Caribbean Cup runners-up. The post Army confident ahead of clash with Caribbean Cup holders Cavalier appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.