The Saint Lucia Kings are in town and are getting ready to build on their strong 2025 Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League season, when they finished top of the table in the regular season. With overseas players and those on West Indies duty missing, the rest of the squad started training at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground on Thursday, looking ahead to the August 9 opener.
Head coach Daren Sammy led the Kings to a 5-3 record last season, but their momentum faded in the playoffs. They lost back-to-back matches and missed out on a place in the final.
To fix those issues, management changed the roster and focused on adding more spin bowling options. The team is bringing back a strong group of local and returning players, including new captain Roston Chase, Matthew Forde, fast bowler Keon Gaston, and young West Indies batsmen Ackeem Auguste and Jewel Andrew.
The team has said goodbye to Alzarri Joseph, David Wiese, Tabraiz Shamsi, and local favourites Johnson Charles and Shadrack Descarte. To strengthen the squad, the 2024 champions have added Sri Lankan off-break bowlers Maheesh Theekshana and Charith Asalanka, as well as Afghan left-arm spinner Noor Ahmad. Saint Lucian fast bowler McKenny Clarke has also returned.
“I think we have a very good chance of competing and a very good chance of winning,” said assistant coach John Eugene. “I think we have some exciting talent, some new faces going into this season, but these are guys who have been in and around the regional circuit.
“We’re happy to have McKenny back. Keon is back, and Chase is leading. It’s unfortunate that we don’t have Johno [Johnson Charles] at the top, but that’s franchise cricket. We have to move on from there. I think with the blend of the exciting young talent that we have on show, in addition to the seasoned campaigners, we will definitely be a force to be reckoned with.”
The Kings hope the retention of Tim Seifert and Johann Jeremiah alongside Auguste and Andrew, and the addition of allrounder Schadley van Schalkwyk, will help consolidate their batting lineup. 2021 player of the season Chase could also play a huge role as captain.
“I think Roston has grown and shown a lot of maturity, even before you as captain,” Eugene said. “He is one of the guys who, you know, we could have always talked to in terms of advice and whatever it takes, you know, to build the team. So, it’s no surprise that he’s chosen as captain. I am sure he’ll do a fantastic job.”
The 2026 schedule allows the Kings to build early momentum in front of their own fans. They play their opening match on the road against the Antigua & Barbuda Falcons on August 9 at Arnos Vale Stadium in St Vincent & the Grenadines, then begin their home games immediately thereafter.
The team will play five home games in a row at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground. On August 12, they face the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots, then have a rematch with the Falcons on August 14. Next, they play Descarte and the Barbados Tridents on August 16, the Guyana Amazon Warriors on August 19, and the Jamaica Kingsmen on August 21.
“We’re here right now at Daren Sammy in a seven-day camp, and obviously we’re going to look to tick a lot of boxes, a lot of roles and clarity of roles and expectations, you know, going into our first game,” Eugene said. “So, it’s an exciting time for us as usual every year. We’re just looking forward to executing as much as we can over the next seven days.”
