The first century scored in the T20 Premier Division this season came from a teenager shaping up to be one of the island’s brightest talents.

Isaiah O’Brien, 18, scored 106 for St David’s against Somerset at Somerset Cricket Club on Saturday afternoon and has quickly become one of the East End side’s most important players.

O’Brien made his Cup Match debut for St George’s as a 17-year-old last year and the game is in his blood with his great-grandfather Samuel Paynter and uncle George O’Brien both playing in the Annual Classic.

If the first weekend of the new season is a portent, O’Brien will be a mainstay of the St George’s team for many years but he is also a humble young man, which is evident when asked about his importance to the St David’s team.

“I feel good knowing that my team backed me fully to do what I do,” he said.

“I’m such a community person and I love playing for the team, so it’s even better for me to know that everyone’s depending on me to make runs.

“I have some high hopes for this year and I would love to make the Bermuda squad for the international tournament in June as it would be so nice to play for Bermuda at home.

“Then obviously I would love to make the Cup Match team again and try to bring the cup back to St George’s.”

O’Brien’s century on Saturday was as patient as a hundred can be in the T20 format, with the big hits coming only after he had evaluated the pitch and played himself in.

“Early on, there was more of running between the wickets with my batting partners. and we ran hard for a long time,” O’Brien said.

“The first 30 or runs was just running hard and then once I started to time the ball and find the middle of the bat, that's when I was looking to expand by going for sixes and fours.

“I always knew it was going to be possible once I got to 50 and I had the team backing me all the way.”

It was not just with the bat that O’Brien caught the eye on Saturday as he ripped through Somerset’s middle order with the ball, taking four wickets.

“I bowled my first over pretty early, trying to tie down the batsmen because they got off to a good start,” O’Brien said.

“I started bowling back of a length and just going off stump, but towards the end, once I realised we had to take wickets and limit the runs, I changed to go fuller and straight at the stumps.

“That brings in LBWs and having players outside the circle to protect the boundaries, it allows me to make sure I go full and attack the stumps.”