Army face Atletico Pantoja in CFU knockout opener in Curacao

THE 2024 First Citizens Knockout Cup champions Defence Force will face a must-win scenario when they tackle Dominican Republic's Club Atletico Pantoja in the round of 16 of the CFU Club Shield from 5.30 pm at the Ergilio Hato Stadium, Willemstad, Curacao on July 27.

Defence Force, who finished the inaugural 2023 TT Premier Football (TTPFL) season as league and knockout cup winners, qualified for the CFU tourney after finishing third in the 2023/24 TTPFL season behind AC PoS and Miscellaneous Police FC.

The top two teams from the CFU tournament will advance to the Concacaf Caribbean Cup which kicks off on August 20, and Defence Force coach Lloyd Andrews says his team has all intentions of advancing to the Concacaf tourney.

"We're all about progress and in order to progress out of this tournament we must win every game. That's our intention," Andrews told Newsday on July 26.

This year, the CFU competition takes on a different shape as it's being contested in a knockout format, with as many as 20 teams involved. With little room for error, Andrews said Defence Force will do their utmost to return to the Concacaf Caribbean Cup, although he admitted to knowing little of the Club Atletico Pantoja team. Last year, both Defence Force and AC PoS exited the Concacaf Caribbean Cup tourney at the group stage.

"Sometimes, in some of these teams, you don't have any information until you find yourself scrambling because you end up in a competition together," Andrews said.

"However, with what I've heard and seen, (Club Atletico Pantoja) is a good team and we intend to go and break them down."

Andrews said preparations have been good for the Army/Coast Guard combination, but he says it's been a challenge for the players to get accustomed to the artificial turf at the Curacao venues.

"We had to wait until we got here to get a feel of what it's like. Now that we know the facts, we just have to adapt and get on the job."

The 21-man Defence Force squad includes skipper Jamali Garcia, Soca Warriors custodian Christopher Biggette and seasoned players such as Brent Sam and combative midfielder Kevon Goddard. Andrews said 30-year-old centre back Jelani Peters has been added to the Defence Force roster for the tourney. Peters featured for TT in the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup campaign.

Defence Force will be without injured midfielder Matthew Woo-Ling, with Nathaniel Garcia also absent from the squad.

Should Andrews' charges get by Club Atletico Pantoja, they will contest the quarterfinals on July 30.