Maroc - NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 09/Jan 13:20

New-look 'Pres' Chaguanas hunt SSCL hat-trick

NEW-LOOK Presentation College Chaguanas will be vying for a hat-trick of PowerGen Secondary Schools Cricket League (SSCL) premier I titles when the 2026 season bowls off on January 20. The 2024 and 2025 champions are without more than five players who were part of the winning team last year. Luke Ali, Fareez Ali, Darius Batoosingh, Aneal Rooplal and Alexander Chase are among those no longer with the school. National Under-17 captain Saleem Khan is expected to be a key figure this year, along with spinner Daron Dhanraj and batsman Jaden Joseph. Speaking to Newsday, coach Kellman Kowlessar said, "We are shaping up good, not bad right now...we have been putting in the work. Trying to get the guys prepared with initially some indoor training and we are on the field right now, trying to get some outdoor practice. "It is a new team, more or less, but we have a lot of experience in the team still. We plan to put up a good fight this year in defending our title." Despite losing a few marquee players, coach Kowlessar is confident in his charges to compete against the other seven teams in the premier I division this season. Players such as Reyad Jerome and Ra'ed Ali Khan are two players expected to take more leadership roles in the team. The "Pres" students and supporters have become spoiled with winning over the last two years, but Kowlessar said they are not reflecting too much on the past two seasons. "There is no pressure really. The guys haven't been talking about defending the title much. Just looking forward to the first day...they just waiting to see what will take place. They are preparing themselves mentally and physically. We are just going out there to try our best and defend it. The school is behind us 100 per cent." Kowlessar said the principal Dr Rene Wihby and team manager Roland Hosein have been giving all the support he could ask for since training began in October. Presentation play on their school compound and the support staff members are instrumental in ensuring the field is in proper condition for cricket. With eight teams competing this year in the round-robin tournament instead of ten, starting the tournament on the wrong foot will leave Presentation or any other team out of title contention. "It will be very important (to start quickly) and if you could recall, the weather would have played an important factor in the opening rounds as well. We are mindful of that and with the shorter version, if you slip up one or two games, that could be the end of it." Presentation College San Fernando, Hillview College, Naparima College, St Mary’s College, Vishnu Boys’ Hindu College and promoted schools Queen's Royal College and Shiva Boys' Hindu College are the other schools in the eight-team tournament. The post New-look 'Pres' Chaguanas hunt SSCL hat-trick appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.