The third cohort of the Saint Lucia Cricket High Performance Centre wrapped up earlier this month at Mindoo Philip Park, with the joint venture between the Saint Lucia National Cricket Association and the Government of Saint Lucia recording multiple milestones that seem to indicate they are on the right track.
SLCHPC graduates have been in the news in recent weeks. Teenager Theo Edward was picked for the Windward Islands Volcanoes. Keon Gaston and Shadrack Descarte made the West Indies A team. Tarrique Edward starred in the Commonwealth Under-23 Showcase. And West Indies retainers were handed to Ackeem Auguste and Zaida James.
Chairman of the SLCHPC, Craig Emmanuel, said the selections are a testament to the players’ talent, but also credited the foundation provided by the dedicated bowling, fielding, and strength and conditioning coaches. Emmanuel singled out Theo Edward.
“I feel very warm in my heart, because I know how much hard work has been put in by the staff at the HPC and, of course, the players themselves. You think of Theo Edward, who has, even before coming into and joining the ranks of the HPC, dominated all age groups and competitions that he has participated in,” said Emmanuel.
“The HPC has just given him that boost that we would have hoped the HPC should be, and has been implemented and installed to do. I’m very much impressed with Tarrique and Theo, and I trust that going into Cohort 4, we will be producing perhaps three or four where we could furnish the West Indies outfits, whether it be Under-19, Under-23s, and the great maroon senior West Indies team.”
A former First Class cricketer himself, Emmanuel noted that the fourth cohort is likely to lean more towards longitudinal training, data analysis, and workload management, with specific interventions like the recent batting, spin bowling, and fast bowling camps.
“The vision is to facilitate a very accelerated progress throughout cricketing pathways for our young people,” Emmanuel explained. “I think we are not fully there yet as an organisation, but with the pillars that we are now looking to implement and add at the HPC, I think that we will satisfy the families of these young cricketers, national cricket, and of course the Government of Saint Lucia.”
In recent months, high performance centres have been announced for territories including Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, and Guyana. Emmanuel is happy to see other countries following Saint Lucia’s lead, but he hopes the SLCHPC can retain pole position.
“The first item on our vision board is that the HPC seeks to be a trendsetter, a model for other academies in the Caribbean,” asserted Emmanuel. “I think we have done that because, apart from the West Indies Cricket Academy for young Under-23s, we are the only island that has a functional and, I would say, productive academy programme.
“Seeing that other Caribbean islands that are proverbially ahead of us and have a bit of a greater goodwill in terms of producing Test players than Saint Lucia are now following in our footsteps, I’m glad to be a bit of a pioneer in that regard. I trust that we can stay in front and keep setting the trend.”
All members of the third cohort have received training and certification as Cricket West Indies coaches, another key aspect of the strategic plan. With the fourth cohort set to start work in the coming weeks, the next class of Saint Lucian cricketers has a lot to look forward to.
