The 2025 Annual Cup Match Classic may be remembered as one where youth was served, as three members from the Bermuda team that will soon contest regional qualifiers for the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup will play the biggest game of their lives at Wellington Oval next week.

Luke Horan and Isaiah O’Brien were chosen by St George’s as colts in two of three enforced changes the challengers made to their squad — captain Sinclair Smith replacing Jarryd Richardson behind the stumps being the other — while in Somerset, Zeri Tomlinson’s decision to decamp from the east after four years as a reserve paid off as he was preferred to incumbent Steven Bremar Jr to take over wicketkeeping duties.

Tomlinson was one of three colts chosen by Somerset, alongside batters Alex Dore and Dalin Richardson.

Former vice-captain Alje Richardson had been ruled out by injury, but Jermal Proctor was dropped after making his first appearance last year.

The exclusion of Proctor, 21, a regular in the Bermuda team over the past 18 months, comes as a bit of a surprise, given his age profile and that he had appeared on an upward trajectory.

It was noticeable, though, that he has enjoyed more joy this season with the bat — where Somerset are spoilt for choice — than with the ball, with the selectors persevering with Macquille Walker, whose none for 46 from nine overs on Saturday does little to set the pulses racing.

The Bailey’s Bay strike bowler, who turns 27 the day after Cup Match, was virtually unemployed in the thumping 226-run win in the West End last year, with club captain Terryn Fray turning to him for a mere three overs over the course of two days — the ignominy of Walker being reduced to a spare part compounded when Somerset declared twice with him next man in.

Dalin Richardson had been knocking on the door at Somerset for several years, including scoring a century in the 2018 final trial without selection, before leaving to ultimately captain Southampton Rangers.

He featured prominently in last season’s game of the year, Colts Cup Match, which contained several of the newcomers appearing in the 2025 Annual Classic.

His century as captain appeared to be carrying Somerset over the line before Horan engineered a quite sensational recovery for the champions with a spell of six for one as St George’s claimed a dramatic one-run victory.

They get to lock horns again on Thursday and Friday.

The challengers’ determination to retain favour with the injured Luke Fulton was reflected in him being named in the squad as a reserve. The fast bowler misses out on first-team selection while he rehabilitates a right shoulder injury that is expected to take several months.

Otherwise, there was little drama in the St George’s selection, which has the look of being decided long before the final trial.

Delray Rawlins, who has been carrying a little niggle in recent weeks, watched from the sidelines to debunk the myth in the east that one must play in the final trial in order to be selected. It was reported yesterday by St George’s that he was feeling under the weather and excused from playing.

Otherwise, Sinclair Smith returning after missing 2024 with injury was a no-brainer as the finest wicketkeeper on island by a country mile.

That meant the fall guy had to be Jarryd Richardson, whose temperament as an early-order batter remains in question — ranking him below Marcus Scotland, Nzari Paynter and Onias Bascome.

The former captain’s position in the team was the subject of speculation after a horrific double failure in 2024, followed by a high-profile transfer to St David’s that appeared to signal a family divorce from St George’s Cricket Club — as brothers Oronde (St David’s, loaned to Southampton) and Oyinde (Southampton) followed him out the door.

But family feuds where the Annual Classic are concerned tend to be very temporary, with Onias not only following the recent precedent of a former club captain retaining his place after moving across the harbour — see Macai Simmons in 2019 — but also returning with Oronde to coach the Colts Cup Match team, who were captained yesterday by Oyinde.

Finally, to Horan, a young cricketer going places, possibly the first 16-year-old to waltz into a St George’s team since coach Clay Smith made his debut 38 years ago.

Even without Fulton going down, the Warwick youngster has impressed everyone with his calm demeanour and seemingly natural ability.

On Saturday, he merely had to confirm what most knew about his promise, which he did quite assuredly despite finishing wicketless from six overs with the new ball to start the match.

At 16, he may be a bit too young to smoke, but after that spell it was indeed pipe-and-slippers time.