Derrel Garcia, Lindell Sween in Soca Warriors' provisional squad for Jamaica friendlies

SECONDARY Schools Football League (SSFL) stars Derrel "Zum Zum" Garcia and playmaker Lindell Sween have been included in the Soca Warriors' provisional squad for next month's pair of friendlies away to Jamaica on February 6 and 9.

The games are outside of Fifa's official match day window and will give Soca Warriors coach Dwight Yorke another opportunity to test the local players at his disposal. The first match will kick off from 8.30 pm (TT time) at the Catherine Hall Stadium, Montego Bay, with the second game scheduled for a 9 pm kickoff at the Anthony Spaulding Sports Complex in Kingston.

Garcia, 17, and Sween, 18, are currently playing with the youthful San Juan Jabloteh team in tier one of the TT Premier Football League (TTPFL). After seven matches, Jabloteh are fifth on the 12-team TTPFL table with 11 points, with Garcia, last year's top scorer in the SSFL premier division, already netting three goals. On January 18, Garcia scored the second goal in Jabloteh's thrilling 4-3 win over Terminix La Horquetta Rangers.

The call-up to the provisional squad for the attacking pair was confirmed by a Jabloteh official. Both Garcia and Sween have represented TT at the national Under-17 and Under-20 level, with Sween also making his senior debut under then-coach Angus Eve in a friendly against Guyana last May.

Yorke and his staff will use the upcoming Jamaica friendlies as preparation for the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup preliminary playoffs against Cuba. The Soca Warriors will play Cuba on the road on March 21, with the home leg scheduled for March 25.

Yorke's first assignment as TT coach was a 3-1 loss away to Saudi Arabia on December 17.

Last October, at the Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet, Tobago, TT got a crucial 3-1 win over Cuba to preserve their spot in Concacaf Nations League A for another cycle.

Yorke is expected to name his full squad for the Jamaica friendlies a few days before the first encounter.