BRAZILIAN Kaka and local striker Anthony Wolfe both scored hat-tricks in an entertaining 5-5 draw featuring the Brazilian Legends against a Trinidad and Tobago All-Stars squad in a “fete match” charity event on Friday night, at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo.
Promoters I95FM certainly scored, drawing an almost full capacity. Despite the princely price of admission--as much as $450 for the covered section of the HCS--local fans were willing to pay for the entertainment and a lime.
The draw was Kaka, Cafu, Rivaldo and Edmílson, a quartet of 2002 FIFA World Cup-winning stars, lining up with and against some of T&T best-ever footballers, and a couple of Caribbean stars.
Making a return to local football was the “Mexican Wave”, one dedicated to popular recently deceased nuts vendor “Jumbo”. Just like in past times, the wave never seemed to want to stop.
Brazilians Kaka and Cafu appeared to be still full of enthusiasm for the beautiful game; the disappointment would have been Rivaldo, who it seems has lost a lot of his touches, and was a peripheral figure on the field.
Apparently is not only England’s Peter Crouch who likes to pull on dreadlocks, but apparently Cafu as well. Has Cafu evolved into a “nasty” player defensively, or is it that we never noticed it before?
Either way, Collin Samuel did not like it a bit when the Brazilian tugged at his dreads, halting the 2006 T&T winger running to goal. Whenever left behind, Cafu made sure that his opponent’s run ended abruptly, getting a couple of crossed looks-- but none serious enough to evolve into anything more.
Still-active Police FC striker Anthony Wolfe, a member of T&T’s 2006 World Cup squad, threatened to take the spotlight away from the Brazilian visitors, firing in an early hat-trick, giving the All-Stars a 3-1 lead at the end of the first of three, 30-minute periods.
That could not be allowed. And when Wolfe threatened to score a fourth, he was immediately pulled off, only to return in the final of the three “thirds”, with the team balanced at 3-3.
It was Kaka who would draw the Legends level at 1-1, combining with Cafu before scoring and cancelling out Wolfe’s opening goal, a diving, low header sending the ball past Kelvin Jack, another member of the 2006 WC squad.
Kaka and Cafu were ever present. Kaka blew past both Cyd Gray and Clayton Ince up the flank, finding Kafu, whose blistering drive was kept out by Clayton Ince, who showed that he is no back number.
Our own “greatest ever”, midfield magician Russell Latapy, showed some touches, and also tried an audacious chip over Jack, which at Latapy’s best, might have dropped in, instead of over the bar.
Kaka and Cafu both netted as the Legends dominated the second period with two goals, levelling the score at 3-3, and leaving all to be decided in the final half-hour period. By then, most were walking rather than running. Nobody was defending much. Well, except for a now bulked-up former national captain Khaleem Hyland, who dropped his pounds on a few opponents, including a shoulder to the face of the still pencil-thin Kelvin “Jaggy” Jagdeosingh.
Kaka would go on to complete his hat-trick when scoring from the penalty spot, but not to be outdone his former Orlando City teammate Kevin Molino would start and finish the move which ended in the final goal for the Legends.
If nothing else, Friday night’s event showed Trinidadians love entertainment and Brazilians. But do they love football? That well be tested on June 5, when the real thing begin with the start of the 2006 FIFA Men’s World Cup qualifying against Grenada. Let’s see how many show up at the same venue, when no Brazilians will be present.
LEGENDS TEAM:
Kelvin Jack (GK), Cafu, Earl Jean, Russell Latapy, Kevin Molino, Rivaldo, Carlos Edwards, Kaka, Khaleem Hyland, Kenwyne Jones, Ansil Elcock, Kern Cupid, Kendall Velox, Elijah Joseph, Lyndon Andrews
Coach: Jamaal Shabazz
ALL-STARS TEAM:
Clayton Morris, Aurtis Whitley, Clint Marcelle, Cyd Gray, Hutson Charles, Devorn Jorsling, Arnold Dwarika, Leonson Lewis, Collin Samuel, Cornell Glen, Curtis Gonzales, Densill Theobald, Keon Daniel, Carlyle Mitchell, Anthony Wolfe, Ataulla Guerra, Hayden Tinto, Radanfah Abu Bakr, Marvin Faustin, Kendell Jagdeosingh, Marvin Phillip (GK)
Coach: Angus Eve.
