WARNER
PORT-OF-SPAIN (Trinidad Express):
JUST 24 hours after Trinidad crashed out of the football World Cup, FIFA vice-president Austin 'Jack' Warner has said he will no longer support the Soca Warriors financially.
In a telephone interview with theDaily Express on Wednesday, Warner, who is still in Germany, said for the past two years he had been shelling out the money to the team so skipper Dwight Yorke's men could achieve their goal of reaching the 2006 World Cup.
However, he says he is no longer willing to shoulder that burden.
"I am no longer prepared to foot the bill as before,'' Warner said, as he explained that he would no longer be paying Dutch coach Leo Beenhakker's salary, living and travelling expenses.
Ironically, at the time of the interview, Warner said he had spoken to Beenhakker on Wednesday morning and they had agreed to hold further discussions in person later on in the day when the Soca Warriors' camp was closed.
Warner said Beenhakker had expressed a desire to stay on and coach the team. The FIFA deputy said, however, that he intended to make it clear to Beenhakker that he would not be forking out any money for the team in the future.
END OF THE LINE
"It is the end of the line ... I have funded the team for the past two years. I have many things to be thankful for, I have no regrets," Warner said.
He said he had had faith in the team and took them as far as the World Cup in Germany. He admitted, though, that he had no aspirations the team would progress beyond the preliminary stages of the prestigious tournament.
Warner did not disclose how much money he had spent over the past two years.
He said he would be "vulnerable" to the society if he disclosed the amount he spent on the Soca Warriors.
