England ended a desperately disappointing season on a modest high last night with a 3-0 win over Trinidad & Tobago, although the poverty of the opposition should prevent their fans getting too excited about the World Cup qualifying campaign after the failure to reach the European Championship finals.

A similar caveat applies to the match-winner, Jermain Defoe, for whom predictions of a brave new world after scoring the fourth and fifth goals of his international career should be tempered by the fact that two of the others came against Andorra. On this cricketing island, the Portsmouth striker appeared as the ultimate flat-track bully.

Fabio Capello will not be complaining, however, with his record in charge now comprising three wins against limited opponents and a defeat by France. The Italian may already have concluded that Dean Ashton lacks the pace to play at the highest level after handing the West Ham United striker an overdue debut, as well as looking at Joe Hart, the Manchester City goalkeeper, Phil Jagielka, the Everton defender, and Stephen Warnock, the Blackburn Rovers defender, for the first time in the second half.

Other than Defoe, who scored in the sixteenth and 49th minutes, the biggest winner of a celebratory evening marking the centenary of the Trinidad & Tobago Football Federation was Gareth Barry. The Aston Villa midfield player opened the scoring with his first international goal in the twelfth minute, brought balance to the midfield alongside Steven Gerrard and wore the captain’s armband for the first time in the second half after David Beckham’s substitution.

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Beckham also provided numerous examples of his enduring quality and global popularity as he marked his 102nd cap with a return to the captaincy, suggesting the political aspect to this trip may also have been successful. The LA Galaxy midfield player attracted more cheers from the crowd than local heroes Brian Lara, a guest of honour, and Dwight Yorke, who came on as a substitute in the second half, showing that he would be a huge asset in the FA’s campaign to host the 2018 World Cup.

Jack Warner, the Trinidad MP and Fifa vice-president, said yesterday that the FA should make Beckham the face of their campaign, while even Rio Ferdinand, a rival for the captaincy, suggested he could regain it on a permanent basis. “Why not?” Ferdinand said. “The manager made it quite clear he was going to give it to people and see how they dealt with it and then he’d make his decision. David got it for this game, so good luck to him.”