Shaka Hislop was the hero for 10-man Trinidad and Tobago as
they began their World Cup finals campaign in Germany with a
surprise 0-0 draw against Sweden on Saturday evening.
The Hammers goalkeeper made a number of superb saves - including one spectacular close-range block from Marcus Allback in the closing stages - as the Carribean minnows kept the highly-fancied Scandinavians at bay to pull off a shock result in their first-ever match at the finals.
Shaka hadn't even been named in the original starting line-up by Trinidad and Tobago boss Leo Beenhaaker, but a knee injury to first choice keeper Kelvin Jack in the warm-up meant the 37-year-old was suddenly called into action - and he responded with a truly heroic performance.
The result was made even more remarkable by the fact that Trinidad - the smallest nation ever to appear at the World Cup finals - played virtually the entire second half with 10-men. Defender Avery John was sent-off for a second bookable offence just 35 seconds after the interval, but his brave team-mates managed to hold on for the draw, and might even have nicked all three points in a late rally.
The result also means that England - who got off to a winning start earlier in the day against Paraguay - should be virtually guaranteed a safe passage from group B to the second round if they beat Trinidad in their next game on Thursday.
However, with our man Shaka in this kind of form, Sven-Goran Eriksson's men should certainly be warned against taking their opposition too lightly!
The Hammers goalkeeper made a number of superb saves - including one spectacular close-range block from Marcus Allback in the closing stages - as the Carribean minnows kept the highly-fancied Scandinavians at bay to pull off a shock result in their first-ever match at the finals.
Shaka hadn't even been named in the original starting line-up by Trinidad and Tobago boss Leo Beenhaaker, but a knee injury to first choice keeper Kelvin Jack in the warm-up meant the 37-year-old was suddenly called into action - and he responded with a truly heroic performance.
The result was made even more remarkable by the fact that Trinidad - the smallest nation ever to appear at the World Cup finals - played virtually the entire second half with 10-men. Defender Avery John was sent-off for a second bookable offence just 35 seconds after the interval, but his brave team-mates managed to hold on for the draw, and might even have nicked all three points in a late rally.
The result also means that England - who got off to a winning start earlier in the day against Paraguay - should be virtually guaranteed a safe passage from group B to the second round if they beat Trinidad in their next game on Thursday.
However, with our man Shaka in this kind of form, Sven-Goran Eriksson's men should certainly be warned against taking their opposition too lightly!