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PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, February 13, 2016 - European-based
Trinidad & Tobago senior professional volleyball quartet,
Krystle Esdelle, Channon Thompson, Sinead Jack and Marc-Anthony
Honore will be the marquee players when the Flow-sponsored T&T
Volleyball Federation Premier League serves off next week.
A former national senior women’s team captain Esdelle is based
in Romania while Thompson is in Turkey, Jack plies her trade in
Russia, and Honore, the lone men’s player on a professional
contract, currently is based in Germany.
However, on completion of their European seasons, the players
are all expected to don the colours of their local clubs for the
respective nine-team men and seven-team women’s Premier Division
which is set to conclude in the second week of May with an
overall prize package of $240,000.
The trio of Esdelle, Jack, and Thompson will suit up for the
University of T&T, third last year while Honore is attached to
Southern United.
Leading the contingent of locally-based players are reigning
Senior Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association (CAZOVA) Men’s
Championship “Most Valuable Player” Simon Blake.
Blake helped Technocrats to the crown last year over bitter
rival Glamorgan.
However, the Toco-born Blake has returned to his home club, Toco
Youths Volleyball Academy and will link up with Fabien
Whitfield, Daneil Williams, Colin Bernard and Kareem Thomas, all
well known beach volleyballers to try and unseat Technocrats.
Technocrats will instead feature a host of young talent led by
national players Marlon Phillip, Nicholas Prescott and Newton
Grant, the club captain and former national youth skipper as
well. The league will serve off with a double-header at the
Central Regional Indoor Sports Arena, Chaguanas on Tuesday
The men’s tournament will comprise defending champions
Technocrats, BIG South East Port-of-Spain (SEPoS), Challengers,
Defence Force, Glamorgan, Southern United Volleyball Academy,
Titans, Toco Youths Volleyball Academy and T&T Development
Academy.
And in the Women’s Premier Division, title-holders Glamorgan,
BIG SEPOS, Southern United Volleyball Academy, Technocrats,
University of T&T (UTT), West Side Stars and T&T Development
Academy will do battle.
In a release to the media, Daymian Stewart president of the T&TVF
said that all involve in the sport can testify to the evolution
they have witnessed in all aspects of our daily lives and it
would be very strange that the national volleyball tournaments
would remain the same year after year, with us all expecting
bigger prizes, more games, quality officiating, increased
spectatorship and good publicity.
He added, “To achieve these objectives certain changes had to be
made to systematically improve our local leagues.
“The divisions as we knew it were dismantled and a new
combination released. This year’s Premier League the new brand
for what we knew as the ‘A’ Division is poised to be the best
local volleyball tournament ever held in this country. Games
will be played in every venue in Trinidad over fifteen weeks. “
Looking ahead to the start of the tournament, Stewart, a NORCECA
Beach Commission Member FIVB Technical Supervisor, added,
“Sixteen teams with over 300 players have registered for our
highest level local tournament, The volleyball fanatics can’t
wait to see our best athletes do battle for quarter million
dollars in prizes, and very soon foreign players will join our
league.
Stewart also brough greetings from President Ary Garcia (FIVB)
who is poised to lead volleyball for the next eight years as his
vision and nine goals are only achievable if developing nations
as ours continue to reach beyond our limits. President Cristobal
Marte-Hoffiz (NORCECA) and President Mushtaque Mohammed
(Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association) continues to be there
for us and T&T volleyball under my watch would continue to
demonstrate its gratitude.
The T&TVF boss, who is also a CAZOVA Executive Director also
thanked local partners, Ministry of Sport Youth Affairs, Sport
Company of T&T (SporTT), T&T Olympic Committee (T&TOC), Flow,
University of T&T (UTT) and Blue Waters are all in full support
of this league and the underlined objective to showcase our
sport and it’s best players athletes.
Last night, the Technical Meeting for all participating clubs
was expected to take place at Chaguanas ahead of next Tuesday’s
opening double-header, a repeat of last year’s men and women
finals between Technocrats and Glamorgan from 7pm. |
