11th Feburary 2010
VFCSS Again
Anthony De Beauville

It was not the type of victory they anticipated, nevertheless a win is a win. Those were the words echoed after the final whistle as Vieux Fort Comprehensive Secondary School was made to work hard to retain the championship that they won last year in the under – 19 Secondary School Basketball Tournament played at the Vigie Multi Purpose Sports Complex.
The boys dressed in the customary gold and black striped outfit continued their impressive winning streak in school sports following on the heels of their compatriots in the Super J Under – 16 Tournament some 48 hours earlier at the same venue.
Playing in a final for the very first time since its inception some 18 years ago, the Principal, teachers and students of George Charles Secondary School must be extremely proud of their players for taking the game to Vieux Fort as the two teams battled it out in the final Quarter with the score 51 – 38. With only a glimpse of hope, and the championship trophy to play for, pride and joy combined was certainly a victory all by itself in the true spirit of sportsmanship for the first timers.
The score really does not speak for itself as VFCSS led in all Quarters 15 – 13, 37 – 23, 51-38 and 67- 60 at the buzzer and George Charles Secondary certainly outscored VFCSS in missing out on a record number of free throws on the line, and in the process squandering a number of easy scoring opportunities one and one. The 2009 defending champions with #8 Desmond Charles, # 4 Olvin Prescott, #9 Kanah Charles, #10 Kervin Mathurin and #11 Philbert Williams was by far the better of the two teams. George Charles they came into the final with a purpose and that was to win the Championship and were led by #12 David Sam, #3 Nilan William, # 8 John Paul, # 9 Aaron Joseph, and # 15 Jennal Joseph in their starting line up.
Interestingly, for a second straight year VFCSS started strong and were never tied or behind in the contest. Desmond Charles scored a 2-point basket and Olvin Prescott drilled in another as VFCSS took the score to a quick 4-0 lead. The defensive prowess of VFSCC was also on display with a couple of quick blocks in the first five minutes.
Two-point baskets by George Charles #8 John Paul and #12 David Sam sparked some life on the court, but at the end of the first quarter VFSCC Sprinted to a 15 -13 advantage. Going into the second quarter VFSCC kept up the defensive pressure, forcing a pair of turnovers to again spark a 5 - 0 run. A put back by Desmond Charles again capped that run.