Brian London: Pleasantville's SSFL future bright

PLEASANTVILLE Secondary coach and physio Brian London says he wants his team to remain hungry for the 2024 season after they copped the girls' Coca-Cola national intercol title with a 2-1 win over Miracle Ministries Pentecostal High School at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo last Thursday.

Alongside fellow team coach Joel Maloney, London, a calypsonian and reigning national extempo champion, led in song from the sideline as ace attacker Nikita Gosine scored a double to lead Pleasantville to victory. Gosine, 14, even dropped to a last-stopper role in the second half to guarantee the girls' Intercol crown went back to the South land.

"It is a young team and it augurs well that players can taste success as young as this and at this early stage of their careers," London told Newsday after Thursday's finale. "It only means they can and will get better. Once that hunger for it is there, they can improve the programme because they will have that thirst for it."

London said the Pleasantville school prides itself on its recruitment programme, which brought them a national double in 2018, among other titles. The 2018 team featured diminutive star forward Alexcia Ali, who netted a hat-trick in the 2018 national intercol final against Signal Hill Secondary. Ali has since gone on to represent TT's senior women's team – scoring TT's lone goal in an unsuccessful Gold Cup qualifying campaign which wrapped up with a defeat to Mexico last Tuesday.

Five years on, Pleasantville have found a new gem in Gosine, who celebrated her brace in the final by observing her 14th birthday on Saturday. Gosine may be a joy to watch for the neutral, but she can be a menace to opposing defences with her skill and ruthless finishing.

"One thing I could say about her: Nikita has a heart for the game and she has a passion to win. At the same time, next year is a different year so we have to go after the two titles.

"She has the desire to win and she understands what it means to take her team over the line."

The extempo champion said humility is the key to continued success for his young charges in the future.

"I always tell my players to stay humble. I grew up in a poor household and some days you could not get things to eat. It was always a household where I learned respect, love and I learned to keep things in perspective. I tell them to 'embrace the moment and look forward. Have respect for everybody and everything you do.'"