Courtesy: CONCACAF.COM


20.4.04 - Guyana, Netherlands Antilles, Surinam and the host Trinidad & Tobago all opened the 2004 Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Preliminary Futsal Qualification Tournament with victories at the University of West Indies in St. Augustine on Monday evening.

The inaugural CFU Futsal Tournament features five countries (Grenada, Guyana, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos Islands) playing in their first international Futsal game, while three other nations (Netherlands Antilles, Puerto Rico, Surinam) have competed in CONCACAF Final Round Qualification Competition four years ago. ( 2000 Results

Three goals by Clifford Braafnart led the Netherlands Antilles (1-0-0, 3 Points) to a 6:2 victory over Grenada (0-1-0, 0 Points) in the Group A opener of the CFU Futsal competition, while in another encounter two goals by Ako James guided Trinidad & Tobago (1-0-0, 3 Points) to a 4:2 win over Puerto Rico (0-1-0, 0 Points).

In Group B, Gino Brandon and Winston Feller each scored twice to pace Surinam (1-0-0, 3 Points) to a 7:0 blanking of St. Vincent & The Grenadines (0-1-0, 0 Points), while a four-goal performance by Alton Frazer led Guyana (1-0-0, 3 Points) to an 11:2 victory over Turks & Caicos Islands (0-1-0, 0 Points).

The 2004 CFU Futsal Preliminary event from 19-23 April, which is sponsored by the Hindu Credit Union Group of Companies, will advance three nations to the 2004 CONCACAF Final Round Qualification scheduled for July in Costa Rica.

The top team from each group will advance to the CONCACAF Futsal Final Round and will also play for the Caribbean title on 23 April. The two runners-up from group play will meet for a third-place play-off game to claim the final CFU berth in the tournament in Costa Rica.

The three Caribbean representatives will join three qualifiers from the North/Central Preliminary Series, along with Cuba and the host Costa Rica, in the eight-team CONCACAF Final Round. This event will qualify two CONCACAF nations to the 2004 FIFA Futsal World Championship to be held in Chinese Taipei from 22 November - 12 December.

2004 CONCACAF FUTSAL QUALIFYING

CFU Tournament – St. Augustine, TRINIDAD & TOBAGO; University of the West Indies

Group A
19.04.2004
GRENADA – NETHERLANDS ANTILLES 2-6 (1-1)
Scorers: Akenson NECKLLES 16’; Franklyn BAPTISTE 28’ – Clifford BRAAFNART 11’, 25’, 29’; Sairon MARTINA 28’; Enron ESPACIA 33’; Clifford PAULETTA 38’

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO – PUERTO RICO 4-2 (3-0)
Scorers: Ako JAMES 9’, 23’; Kevin PETERS 14’; Marvin LEE 17’ – Chaco SANTIAGO 28’ dp; José GARCÍA 35’ dp

20.04.2004
PUERTO RICO – GRENADA (18:00)
NETHERLANDS ANTILLES – TRINIDAD & TOBAGO (20:00)

21.04.2004
PUERTO RICO – NETHERLANDS ANTILLES (18:00)
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO – GRENADA (20:00)

Group B
19.04.2004
SURINAM – ST. VINCENT & THE GRENADINES 7-0 (3-0)
Scorers: Winston FELLER 9’, 21’; A. DOESBURG 8’; C. SAMOAN 17’; Gino BRANDON 23’, 24’; R. DERBY 33’

GUYANA – TURKS & CAICOS ISLANDS 11-2 (4-1)
Scorers: Erron HAYDE 4’, 18’, 21’; Alton FRAZER 10’, 22’, 36’, 38’; Zevon ATKINSON 20’, 27’; Kanata MENNINGS 21’, 39’ – Christopher BRYAN 6’; Ryan DUFFY 28’

21.04.2004
TURKS & CAICOS ISLANDS – ST. VINCENT & THE GRENADINES (17:00)
SURINAM – GUYANA (19:00)

23.04.2004
Group B Runner-up vs. Group A Runner-up (20:00)
Group A Winner vs. Group B Winner (21:00)