In 1973, Trinidad and Tobago came close to qualifying to play in the 1974 football World Cup final in West Germany. Just two points away from making the cut, we played against Haiti on 4th December 1973 in a very controversial match. Six goals were scored by T&T, five of which were denied. We lost 2-1 to Haiti. In the aftermath, the referee from El Salvador and a linesman from Canada were banned for life by FIFA.
Two decades would pass when hopes would rise again. 1989 and our team calling itself Strike Squad were one game away from qualifying to play in Italy. All we needed to do was draw and we were in. Trinidad and Tobago’s final qualifying game was against the United States of America at home on 19 November, 1989. T&T was a sea of red as supporters donned any and everything red. Those who could not make it to the National Stadium where the match was held, filled up venues where there were big screens. We lost 1-0 and again the impossible dream remained an impossible dream.
As the saying goes, “The third time’s the charm” and so it was in 2006. Our team now calling itself Soca Warriors qualified for the finals in Germany after defeating Bahrain 1-0. We became the smallest country to qualify for the World Cup. This was indeed a proud time for every citizen of Trinidad and Tobago and as small as were were, we made the biggest noise as Trini Fever took over Germany and most German locals were singing along with the tribute song “Fighter” recorded by Maximus Dan.
