PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) — Head coach Stephen Hart has praised Trinidad and Tobago’s work ethic, as they continue to prepare for this month’s CONCACAF Gold Cup in the United States.

The national side have been in camp for the last week and have been undergoing double sessions daily as they build up to the July 7-26 campaign.

“They have been fantastic. The response has been very good. There has been absolutely no complaint,” Hart said.

“The work has been the equivalent of a pre-season so it’s been a lot of work. We had a dietician come in and work with the players and do some tests, explaining what needs to be done. Everyone has been training very hard so far and we will continue along this phase.”

T&T face a difficult campaign in Group C, where they face Guatemala, Mexico and Spanish-speaking Caribbean counterparts, Cuba, in the preliminary round.

They open against Guatemala on July 9 in Chicago, take on Cuba three days later in Pheonix before closing out against CONCACAF giants Mexico in Charlotte.

Hart said the side had been focusing on match readiness but would shortly be putting together their game plans, and tailor-making them to target specific opponents.

“We’ve segmented what we need to do,” he explained.

“The early stages have been focused on our mental and physical preparation and then we will move into the ball phase or the sort of tactical phase of the team development as well as working on a couple of different systems to suit the opposition we will be meeting.”

T&T’s preparation has been hit by the absence of several key players through injury, with Orlando City midfielder Kevin Molino, Hughtun Hector and defenders Seon Power and Carlyle Mitchell, all ruled out.

The Hoyte brothers, Justin and Gavin, will also miss the trip due to club commitments.

However, Hart said the team would be forced to make the necessary adjustments.

“You cannot replace the type of player, but we have other players that can step in. They play a little bit differently so we will adjust how the team plays to suit their strengths but that will all come in the later part of the camp,” he pointed out.

“Injuries are part of football. Unfortunately it’s in the department where we are a bit suspect which is scoring goals, but in the last two games we created a lot of opportunities and it’s just a matter of tucking them away.”