CATHERINE HALL, St James — Jamaica’s senior men’s team, the Reggae Boyz, will kick off their build-up to the next phase of their football development tonight when they take on Caribbean rivals Trinidad and Tobago in the first of two friendly internationals at the Montego Bay Sports Complex.

Kick-off is 8:30 pm.

The teams will meet again on Tuesday in Trinidad.

After taking over at the tail-end of the CONCACAF Final round qualifying for next year’s FIFA World Cup in Brazil, coach Winfried Schafer who is expected to sign a multi-year contract soon, will get the chance to put his own stamp on the programme and build his own brand.

Despite not qualifying for the CONCACAF Final round, Trinidad is ranked at number 81 on the latest FIFA World Rankings, one place ahead of Jamaica who failed to

win any of their games in the Hexagonal round.

An eclectic group of local-based and United States-based players, including four teenagers, have been assembled for tonight’s game that will take on a strong-looking Trinidad team that will be led by Kenwyn Jones, who plies his trade in the English Premier League with Stoke City.

Just seven of the 22 invitees to the Jamaican team are US-based against 11 overseas-based players that will be available to Trinidad coach Stephen Hart.

In two press conferences held in Montego Bay over the last two weeks, Schafer has repeatedly said he needed to see how the local-based players acquit themselves in international games against other national teams.

In a press conference to announce the teams held at the Riu Hotel in Rose hall on Tuesday, the German coach said the Trinidad games “are a very good test for us and will give the young players the chance to make mistakes so we can help them get better”.

He also said “this is the start of a new chapter where we can test players and see what we have”.

Jermaine ‘Tuffy’ Anderson, who led the National Premier League scoring over the last two seasons and who was brought in late in the failed World Cup campaign, is expected to lead the Jamaican attack tonight and could be paired with former Rusea’s High marksman Brian

Brown who now plays for Harbour View.

Former St Elizabeth Technical striker Deshorn Brown, who is one of the top rookies in the United States Major League and who impressed in two games at the end of the World Cup campaign, is also expected to see significant playing time.

Jones, who will captain the Trinidad team, could be a handful for Jamaican defenders and Hart could also give starting places to Lester Peltier who plays for Slovan Bratislava in Slovakia and Andre Boucaud of Notts County in the English League One.

Squads: Jamaica — Richard McCallum, Jermaine Anderson, Montrose Phinn, Kemar Lawrence, Brian Brown, Gariece McPherson, Keammar Daley, Darren Mattocks, Omar Daley, Alva Powell, Adrian Reid, Deshawn Brown, Jason Johnson, Michael Seaton, Je-Vaughn Watson, Dicoy Williams, Upstan Edwards, Ricardo Morris, Jermaine Woozencroft, Andrew Vanzie, Isamnia Cohan, Khesanio Hall.

Trinidad and Tobago — John Michael Williams, Cleon Johns, Deneil Cyrus, Radanpha Abubaker, Carlyle Mitchell, Aubrey Davids, Curtis Gonzalves, Justin Hoyte, Kevon George, Denzil Theobalds, Jovain Jones, Atullah Guerre, Kenwyne Jones, Rudol Winchester, Andre Boucaud, Sheldon Bateau, Lester Peltier.