Character.
And a tremendous amount of it to boot!
Thats what your Soca Warriors displayed yesterday.
Not many of the international pundits gave us a chance of coming away with a point from the match against the Swedes.
But not only did we get a point, we did it with ten men for most of the second half.
We may be outsiders and underdogs in this tournament, but our manager has underscored the importance of earning respect. Whatever happens now, yesterdays result would have gone a long way in ensuring that the football world respects us.
We were told by Mr Beenhakker to go out and play to the best of our ability and dont worry about the occasion. I dare say that we did just that.
Our plan was to make sure that no goals were scored on us and if you found that I played a lot deeper in defence than previously, that was a deliberate ploy.
There was a fierce determination by our players throughout and unlike most other teams who would probably have buckled under pressure after losing a player, our guys doubled up their workload.
They knew that they had to put in an extra 100 per cent to make up for the man who was sent off and they responded well.
Shaka Hislop led us in prayer on the eve of the kick-off ...and how well did he perform. He is another of the senior players and he will no doubt remember yesterdays match as one of his best ever.
We will obviously be hoping that he can keep a clean sheet throughout the tournament. He is in excellent form.
I will forever remember the roar at the kick-off. The support of our fans has really lifted our spirits and this was a morale-boosting result for us. I thank the whole of T&T and the guys have vowed to continue to give you reason to be proud of us.
We are sure you will have many more days to celebrate.
We have been warned to keep our head on the ground, because if we get too high, the fall could be devastating.
I told the guys that it does not get better than reaching the World Cup finals. I have to admit I was wrong. It got better with yesterdays draw and, the way we are feeling at the moment, anything is possible.
England and Paraguay must know now that they both have serious football matches on their hands if they want three points against us.
From what I understand, their match, which England won 1-0, was quite close, and it could easily have ended in a draw.
What it means now is that Paraguay cannot afford to lose to Sweden on Thursday. And Sweden will be fighting desperately for three points.
It sets up that match as a real dogfight.
As for us, we will be going to Nuremberg with no pressure on us. England will probably have to readjust their thinking and expectations about the Warriors.
It really is a great feeling. Before yesterday, no one gave serious thoughts about us.
Now, we have them thinking.
Believe me, thats a great feeling!
And a tremendous amount of it to boot!
Thats what your Soca Warriors displayed yesterday.
Not many of the international pundits gave us a chance of coming away with a point from the match against the Swedes.
But not only did we get a point, we did it with ten men for most of the second half.
We may be outsiders and underdogs in this tournament, but our manager has underscored the importance of earning respect. Whatever happens now, yesterdays result would have gone a long way in ensuring that the football world respects us.
We were told by Mr Beenhakker to go out and play to the best of our ability and dont worry about the occasion. I dare say that we did just that.
Our plan was to make sure that no goals were scored on us and if you found that I played a lot deeper in defence than previously, that was a deliberate ploy.
There was a fierce determination by our players throughout and unlike most other teams who would probably have buckled under pressure after losing a player, our guys doubled up their workload.
They knew that they had to put in an extra 100 per cent to make up for the man who was sent off and they responded well.
Shaka Hislop led us in prayer on the eve of the kick-off ...and how well did he perform. He is another of the senior players and he will no doubt remember yesterdays match as one of his best ever.
We will obviously be hoping that he can keep a clean sheet throughout the tournament. He is in excellent form.
I will forever remember the roar at the kick-off. The support of our fans has really lifted our spirits and this was a morale-boosting result for us. I thank the whole of T&T and the guys have vowed to continue to give you reason to be proud of us.
We are sure you will have many more days to celebrate.
We have been warned to keep our head on the ground, because if we get too high, the fall could be devastating.
I told the guys that it does not get better than reaching the World Cup finals. I have to admit I was wrong. It got better with yesterdays draw and, the way we are feeling at the moment, anything is possible.
England and Paraguay must know now that they both have serious football matches on their hands if they want three points against us.
From what I understand, their match, which England won 1-0, was quite close, and it could easily have ended in a draw.
What it means now is that Paraguay cannot afford to lose to Sweden on Thursday. And Sweden will be fighting desperately for three points.
It sets up that match as a real dogfight.
As for us, we will be going to Nuremberg with no pressure on us. England will probably have to readjust their thinking and expectations about the Warriors.
It really is a great feeling. Before yesterday, no one gave serious thoughts about us.
Now, we have them thinking.
Believe me, thats a great feeling!
