Trinidad and Tobago will attempt to create another piece of history and make their journey to South Africa less bumpy today when they take on the United States in a 2010 World Cup qualifier at LP Field, Nashville, Tennessee at 7 p.m. (8 p.m. T&T time).

T&T’s Soca Warriors have never beaten the Americans away in World Cup qualifying and have only avoided defeat once in the States, a 1-1 draw courtesy of a Hutston Charles equaliser in 1989.

Captain Dwight Yorke and Russell Latapy were members of the squad back then but today only one will be eligible to take the field while the other can add moral support in the dressing room before kick-off and from the sidelines during the 90 minutes.

For Yorke, though--now serving a two-game suspension which was reduced from four games-- this could just be the historic occasion he couldn’t have been an active part of.

’America always seem to be a difficult team to play, especially when they are at home,’ Yorke told Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (TTFF) media officer Shaun Fuentes yesterday. ’But the gap has been closing over the years and there’s no reason why we shouldn’t think we can pull something off here on Wednesday.

’We need to be positive, but we also have to respect America because their record speaks for itself. We need to believe that we can get a result here. We would like to get something from the game and hopefully we can play to our capabilities and go away with something,’ Yorke added.

’I’m hugely disappointed to not be involved here on Wednesday, but I’m here to support the players and be there in whatever way that I can.

’I’m excited about my return against Costa Rica (June 6 in Port of Spain) because at one stage it didn’t look that I would be back until much later in the campaign, but things went well for us and I’m really looking forward to being part of the team and involved in the matches again when we come up against Costa Rica and Mexico,’ Yorke said.

The last time T&T played Honduras at home in a World Cup qualifier was in 2001 when the Central Americans came away 4-2 winners. T&T also travelled to face the USA in Boston three days later and were downed 2-0, a result which virtually crashed their chances of advancing to the South Korea/Japan 2002 World Cup.

This time around, T&T are in the US on the heels of a 1-1 draw with Honduras last Saturday at the Hasely Crawford Stadium and with two points on the board, having drawn 2-2 in their final round opener against El Salvador in February.

’I remember what took place back then and it was extremely disappointing for all of us. We had lost badly to Honduras and the spirit in the camp was far from encouraging and then we lost to the US. This time, though, things are in better shape. We feel that we are in a way better position,’ said veteran striker Stern John, who was also part of that team in 2001.

T&T head coach Francisco Maturana is remaining positive, even though he knows the odds may be against the Warriors.

’Everyone will expect the host team, USA, to get the victory because they are favourites in the group. But football can bring many different results and if we can be positive and believe in our chances then the result could go our way. We do not expect anything in this game to be easy but we must also not make it easy in any way for them,’ Maturana said.

Midfielder Chris Birchall thinks T&T need to frustrate the US from early on.

’Obviously they (USA) will have at the back of their minds that we were the last team to defeat them in a World Cup qualifier (last year) so I think they are going to want to come at us and we would need to frustrate them for as long as possible. We need to play well and take some points from this game,’ said the Brighton man.

In the 3-0 loss in the semi-final round to the US last year in Illinois, missing from the T&T team were Kenwyne Jones, Stern John, Clayton Ince, Russell Latapy, Birchall and Khaleem Hyland,  while Dennis Lawrence and Jason Scotland never made it off the bench. This time around all those names are in the national squad in Nashville.

T&T had to bring forward their training from 7 p.m. to 3 p.m. yesterday because of an anticipated thunderstorm in Nashville from around 6 p.m.

On Monday night, the team trained at the nearby Trevecca College Ground in slightly chilly conditions.

Tonight, the Warriors will attempt to let Soca take over in what is dubbed the Music City, which is the home of the Grand Ole Opry, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and many major record labels.

Some 1,500 red-clad T&T fans are expected at the venue to offer their support to Latapy and company.

Panama’s Roberto Moreno is the referee for the encounter, with his countrymen Daniel Williamson and Carlos Pastrana serving as the assistants.

NOTE: LP Field is a football stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, used primarily as the home stadium of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans, but also the home football field for the Tennessee State University Tigers. It is also the site of the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl, a post-season college football game, played each December, and is occasionally used as a venue for soccer matches. LP Field is located on the east bank of the Cumberland River, directly across the river from downtown Nashville.

Its seating capacity is slightly under 69,000. Its first event was a pre-season game between the Titans and the Atlanta Falcons on August 27, 1999.

The playing surface at LP Field is Tifsport Bermuda Sod, a natural grass.