Hart Linked With Trinidad And Tobago Return

A new report by SocaWarriors.net indicates that former Halifax Wanderers head coach Stephen Hart may be set for a return to the Trinidad and Tobago national team post.

The Soca Warriors exited the 2023 Gold Cup after an opening win against Saint Kitts and Nevis was followed by hefty losses to Jamaica and the United States, potentially spelling the end of head coach Angus Eve’s reign after 12 wins, 9 draws, and 7 defeats – though no such removal has been made official as of yet.

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While that’s a strong overall record for the country, SocaWarriors.net reports that Eve has lost the full backing of the national team body. It’s been two years since he took the helm from English head coach Terry Fenwick.

Hart had led Trinidad and Tobago between 2013 and 2016, where he helped the side crack the infamous ‘Hex’ in Concacaf World Cup qualifying along with guiding them beyond the Gold Cup group stage in 2015.

A former national remember member for them himself, the Trinidadian was born in San Fernando.

In 2019, he was awarded nearly 750,000 USD in a lawsuit over unpaid wages and bonuses from his time with the team – though any bad blood from that litigation has evidently long since coagulated.

The website reports that Hart was approached by the Trinidad and Tobago football federation back in February, but the 63-year-old said he’d rather wait until the post was vacant before discussing a potential return.

Hart is a well-known face in Canadian soccer circles, having coached the Canadian men’s national team from 2009 to 2012 before his tome coaching Trinidad and Tobago, later being selected as the first-ever head coach of the Halifax Wanderers, where he led the team to a one league final appearance in four seasons and collecting a coach of the year award in 2020.

The Wanderers parted ways with Hart following a 2022 CPL season that saw the club fall short of playoffs for the second straight year, and he’s been without a head coach role ever since.

It’s reported that Hart’s return to the Trinidad and Tobago setup would see him bring in former national team captain Kenwyn Jones on his technical staff, someone we reported Hart nearly signed in Halifax.

It is rumoured that Jones has been offered a head coach role with the women’s national team, but turned this down to work with Hart instead.

Further rumours state that Angus Eve was offered the women’s head coaching role, though he is expected to exit the T&TFA organization in totality to join domestic side Tiger Tanks Club Sando.

With the country’s exit from the Gold Cup and without any friendlies on the books, Trinidad and Tobago’s next scheduled match will be in the 2023-2024 Concacaf Nations League Group A which will see them face Panama, Guatemala, El Salvador, Martinique, and Curacao.