Eccles calls for more hockey $upport

Trinidad and Tobago captain Solomon Eccles, left, takes a shot at goal against Poland during the recent Indoor Hockey World Cup in Germany.
Trinidad and Tobago captain Solomon Eccles, left, takes a shot at goal against Poland during the recent Indoor Hockey World Cup in Germany.

JOEL BAILEY

TRINIDAD AND Tobago men’s indoor hockey team captain Solomon Eccles is calling for more financial support for the sport in the twin-island republic.

Eccles was speaking on Monday, upon the team’s return home from Berlin, Germany, where they finished 10th in the 12-team FIH Indoor Hockey World Cup.

TT made tremendous strides at the World Cup, defeating Kazakhstan 6-4 for their first ever Hockey World Cup win and had some close losses to Australia (7-6) an Russia (3-2).

“I learnt that although we’re a small country with a limited amount of teams, if we were given the right amount of opportunities in terms of time and training, we would be able to (place higher),” said the TT captain. “Once the opportunity is given to us, we would excel.”

Asked what opportunities he was referring to, Eccles replied, “At this point, all the players have their jobs. It’s not a paying sport and bills have to be paid. You can’t take us out and go to camps for (a) lengthy period of time because we’re not getting paid.”

He added, “In Trinidad, if they were to put enough money so that people would be comfortable at their homes as well, we can go to three (or) four-month tours in Europe.

“A lot of things still have to be done for the less-popular sports in Trinidad and Tobago to excel. I think it’s possible if any one of these teams get any type of support, going forward into any international tournament, we would do much better.”

Eccles said he was pleased with the growth shown by the team during their warm-up camp in the Netherlands.

“When we went over to Holland, the pace was so much greater,” he said.

“What I love about the boys (is) that we adapted so quickly. We had three games in Holland and we came up to speed with those three games. When we went into the World Cup, it wasn’t too much of a shock. The tournament was really good for us.” The TT defender noted, “The amount of pace that these teams come at is an eye-opener but we can go toe-to-toe with anyone. We showed that we were capable of being in the World Cup and we were worthy enough to be (there).”

Eccles continued, “My aspirations (are) that we qualify for all the World Cups. This is our second stint in the World Cup. In the next Pan Am (Championships), I expect us to have a very good showing and to show that we have what it takes to continue performing at the level that we performed at this World Cup. For the younger ones coming up, we’re going to ensure that the skill level continues.”

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"Eccles calls for more hockey $upport"

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