National Hockey team suffers defeat in first game against Trinidad

The National Hockey Team was put at a disadvantage over the weekend, as its members arrived in Trinidad and Tobago 4-and-a-half hours late owing to a flight cancellation and several other unforeseen circumstances.
Additionally, a damper was put on the usual up-tempo spirits of the National Team when members were forced to cancel their planned warm-up practice session.
Having to head straight into the first of three games, the Guyanese team sought to make the best of their situation. The team started tentatively and conceded several turnovers in the midfield, which led to penetrating Trinidadian counter-attacks.
An example of such came in the eighth minute when outstanding Trinidadian midfielder Shaquille Daniel sent a flying reverse shot into the scoring area, only for it to be deflected by Akin Toussaint.

Trinidad got their first breakthrough after the restart of the game, thanks to an unforced error by the Guyanese midfield. Being awarded a penalty corner, the Guyanese goalkeeper maintained an attentive attitude and managed to block the initial drag flick, but Trinidad’s Michael O’Connor capitalised with a rebound.
By the start of the second quarter, the Guyanese confidence started to grow and they created several goal scoring opportunities of their own, but were never able to get past the Trinidad goalkeeper.
The three-match series comes as a warm-up for the upcoming Central American and Caribbean Games which are to be held in Barranquilla, Columbia from July 20 to July 30. Trinidad and Tobago are currently the top ranked team in the tournament, and will have to oppose Cuba, Barbados and Colombia in pool A, while Guyana are in pool B with Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica.