ON a cold night in Mexico City, some 7,000 feet above sea level, the Soca Warriors came to town looking to get their World Cup challenge back on track, but it was hard going in front of 92,000 home fans, especially after conceding in the very first minute at the Azteca Stadium.

After a start in Saturday's game against Costa Rica, Dragon's Silvio Spann was a substitute but entered the fray with 19 minutes remaining and the Warriors trailing the Central American powerhouse nation.

The 2-1 result came as a relief to the hosts after back-to-back defeats in Honduras and El Salvador, but was not enough to squeeze into the top three places of the CONCACAF final stage group that would guarantee a place in South Africa.

Javier Aguirre's team got off to a perfect start when Guillermo Franco collected a pass on the right, cut inside and slipped the goal past Clayton Ince in the first minute.

Mexico wasted chances to add to their lead and paid when youngster Hayden Tinto pounced on a defensive mistake and fired into the top corner on the stroke of halftime.

The hosts regained the lead three minutes after the break, when Oscar Rojas scored from outside the area. This defeat leaves the Soca Warriors bottom with two points from five games.

Click here for a brief look at the match action...

Click here for an interview wth Carlos Edwards prior to the week's games...

Click here to watch the Warriors training at the Azteca Stadium...

The following match report is from SocaWarriors.com:

If it was one time T&T ever had a chance of stealing a point in Mexico it would have been this week as Mexico was very venerable in defence, didn't put away their chances and didn't look to confident. But on the other hand, so too was T&T...

The "hexagonal" has reached its midpoint and Trinidad and Tobago will have to recap and come a lot better if they are to keep their World Cup 2010 hopes alive. At this moment the Soca Warriors is hanging by a thread and it looks impossible for them to reach South Africa. But as the Adidas commercial goes, Impossible is Nothing.

T&T remains in cellar-place of the 2010 CONCACAF World Cup qualifying series after a 2-1 defeat to Mexico at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico, on Wednesday night. A game that was all one-way traffic by the host, but- there was a few bright moments for Latapy's men. At half time T&T must have counted themselves lucky to be heading into their locker-room with a surprising 1-1 tie.

Striker Guillermo Franco took advantage of a T&T defensive blunder to send his side up 1-0 as early as the first minute of the game. From there on it was all Mexico, they piled attack on-top off attack on T&T's goal but the heroics of Clayton Ince kept the Mexican at bay and the scoreline a respectable one.

T&T defence was suspicious and nerve wrecking for most parts and Mexico took full advantage of that. Surprisingly the more experienced Keyeno Thomas was left on the bench and Makan Hislop along with newcomer Radanfah Abu-Bakr was caught in no man's land on many occasions. Though, both made some good close up saves they just couldn't keep up with the wing play of the Mexican team. Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Israel Castro was having a field day with T&T defence. While Alberto Medina was having target practice on Clayton Ince.

The Mexicans saw the inexperienced and slow pace in T&T's defensive duo and throughout the game they would attack down the wing especially down the left side (T&T's right side) finding huge gaps in T&T defence. But, the men in green did everything right except get on the score-sheet and it almost cost them as the visitors equalised on the stroke of half time.

Seconds before the halftime whistle blew T&T got a lifeline and from a source no one probably expected. Joe Public midfielder Hayden Tinto picked up on a loose ball and made no mistake as the former Malick winger slip pass two Mexican defenders before unleashing a right-footed blast inside the 18 that eluded goalkeeper Oscar Perez into the upper right corner to send T&T into the half with a 1-1 tie and Mexicans in disbelief.

Tinto's goal was not only refreshing but it will go down into the history books for T&T as it's the first ever goal scored by that nation in the Azteca. The former Caledonia AIA winger had more shots on goal than his £20 million rated teammate Kenwyne Jones, who, by the way should have buried one pass Perez in the 37th minute when he got a clean pass from Keon Daniel who eluded his man with ease.

Jones had the goal at his mercy but Oscar Perez managed to get his finger-tip on the ball before the big Sunderland striker could take a shot, the ball ricocheted off Jones and was heading into an open net, but goalscorer Oscar Rojas got there before the onrushing Tinto to stop the ball from entering into the goal.

The second half resumed and it was more or less the same, Mexico got of to a brilliant start again, and it took them only three minutes this time to get on the scoreboard. Midfielder Oscar Rojas scored with a 35-yard blast that eventually gave the Mexicans a 2-1 victory over the Soca Warriors and a win that revived El Tri's World Cup hopes after a disappointing 2-1 defeat to T&T's next opponent El Salvador 4 days earlier.

As for T&T. In the early stages of the game Dwight Yorke had to work extra hard in bailing out his defence with many important tackles. The T&T captain was running on empty and started to fall off a bit coming to the end, but, the former Manchester United man still managed to be one of T&T's better midfielders of the night as Trent Noel was having an awful game, Keon Daniel held the ball too long and didn't make full use of the few chances he got. Christopher Birchall had some lost moments and could not contain his man.

Carlos Edwards was hesitant is his tackles and escorted his marker into T&T defence. Marvin Andrews got beat for pace every time Mexico came forward, he looked a shadow of his old self but was still T&T's best defender of the night. Kenwyne Jones has an athletic built and at 6' 2"- he could not escape his midget marker to even get a shot on goal.

Despite scoring the goal and only his second start for T&T, Tinto still needs to learn how to play the wing more effectively but for a newcomer he can surely teach some of the older players a trick or two, however, Clayton Ince has gotten my vote for T&T's man of the match, he saved us to many times, the score cold have easily be in the double digits.

T&T did deserve some credit though as they fought to the end, the score was respectable and they could score if they really wanted to. But results is what really matters and the Soca Warriors will have two months to prepare (yes Latapy, a friendly or two might do T&T some good) and possibly find a solution to plug their leaky defence.

Coming off its first World Cup appearance, the Soca Warriors have three home games left, but included are meetings with the United States (Sept. 9) and Mexico (Oct. 14). The top three teams qualify, and No. 4 meets the fifth-place nation from South America in a playoff.

Teams

Trinidad & Tobago: 1.Clayton Ince; 11.Carlos Edwards, 4.Marvin Andrews, 2.Makan Hislop, 3.Radanfah Abu-Bakr; 10.Hayden Tinto, 17.Dwight Yorke (capt), 7.Christopher Birchall, 8.Trent Noel (16.Silvio Spann 72), 9.Keon Daniel (13.Kerry Baptiste 80); 15.Kenwyne Jones (6.Devon Jorsling 54).
Subs: 14.Collin Samuel, 5.Keyeno Thomas, 21.Marvin Phillip, Densill Theobald, Khaleem Hyland.

Mexico: 1.Oscar Perez, 2.Francisco Rodriguez, 3.Carlos Salcido, 5.Ricardo Osorio, 6.Oscar Rojas, 8.Israel Castro, 16.Carlos Esquivel (7.Alberto Medina 53rd), 18.Andres Guardado, 9.Nery Castillo (14.Miguel Sabah 35th), 10.Cuauhtemoc Blanco, 11.Guillermo Franco (17.Giovani Dos Santos 77th).

	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
	Costa Rica	5	4	0	1	9	5	12
	USA	5	3	1	1	10	6	10
	Honduras	5	2	1	2	6	6	7
	Mexico	5	2	0	3	6	8	6
	El Salvador	5	1	2	2	6	7	5
	Trinidad and Tobago	5	0	2	3	6	11	2

T&T play their next game at home to El Salvador on 12 August.

The top three countries qualify directly for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, while the fourth placed side will have to play-off with a South American nation for the final spot at next year's finals.