Saint Lucia’s Under-16 netball team begin their campaign at the 21st Jean Pierre Caribbean Youth Netball Tournament in Barbados against Antigua and Barbuda on Monday at the Garfield Sobers Gymnasium.
The squad blends experience and fresh talent, with co-captains Naija Ferdinand and Rhea Jn Phillip leading five returning players from last year’s fourth-place finish on home soil.
Ferdinand, a third-year national player and St. Joseph’s Convent student from Micoud, told St Lucia Times she is eager to get on court after months of strenuous preparation.
“Training so far has not been the easiest,” she admitted. “But I’m excited about going to Barbados because we have a good team. We have a fighting chance, and I’m just excited to play.
“Compared to other training sessions I’ve done before with the Under-16 nationals, this year has been kind of harder just because we have so much running to do, and before every session, we have suicides. [But] the team bonded really quickly.”
The versatile attacker, who can also play defence, is joined by fellow returnees Sherise Joseph (Soufriere), Yohanna Magloire (Beanefield Comprehensive), and Hailey Thomas (Castries Comprehensive).
The squad features seven debutantes, including the youngest member, 13-year-old shooter Neriah Charlery from Blanchard.
Head coach Shem Maxwell revealed Charlery was discovered less than a year ago through Netball Saint Lucia’s school talent identification programme: “She may not be fully prepared this year, but we are hoping next year she will do much better than this year.”
Other newcomers include centre-court player Andrea Wallis from the Babonneau community and a student at Entrepot Secondary; defender Nyssa Lascaris, a Soufrerian who attends Leon Hess Comprehensive; centre-court player Linsey Auguste of Careille and Castries Comprehensive; defender Hayla Samuel of Blanchard and Vieux Fort Comprehensive; and shooter Clarise Nervais and centre-court player Kiehanna St Juste from Micoud Secondary.
Maxwell acknowledged areas for improvement: “When it comes to the defensive end, we still have a lot of work to be done. I’m hoping for the best, that everybody puts their best foot forward, and gives us what we’ve taught them. We are hoping that we do better than last year, and expecting great things from the ladies.”
Six nations will compete in the tournament, which starts this weekend with hosts Barbados seeking a third consecutive title. The other teams are Dominica, Grenada, and Trinidad and Tobago.
The Saint Lucian squad, managed by Deselva Florton with assistant coach Joann Anderson, completed final preparations in Micoud this week after months of training across multiple venues.
All matches will be streamed live on Caribbean Netball and Sports BB platforms.
